Hematological Profiles and Complete Blood Count Alterations in Smokers
Authors
Şule Şirin BERK, Hatice ŞahinFiles
Abstract
Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the associations between cigarette smoking and hematological parameters in otherwise healthy individuals.
Methods: A total of 109 individuals were included in the study, comprising 49 active smokers and 60 never-smokers. Complete blood count parameters along with related hematological indices were retrospectively evaluated.
Results: A total of 109 participants (49 smokers, 60 non-smokers) were evaluated. In unadjusted analyses, smokers exhibited significantly higher white blood cell (WBC), neutrophil, lymphocyte, eosinophil, and hemoglobin levels (p<0.05). However, after adjusting for sex, only WBC (p=0.002) and lymphocyte (p=0.033) levels remained significantly higher in the smoker group. Correlation analyses showed that cumulative smoking exposure was positively associated with WBC, lymphocyte, and RDW levels (p<0.05). Multivariable linear regression further revealed that cumulative smoking exposure was an independent factor associated with higher leukocyte levels (B=0.004, p=0.009), whereas sex was the primary factor independently associated with red cell distribution width (RDW-SD) (B=−2.555, p<0.001). The inclusion of smoking exposure improved the adjusted R 2 for the WBC model from 0.015 to 0.113.
Conclusion: This study indicates that smoking is significantly associated with variations in hematological parameters and inflammatory markers. After adjusting for confounding factors such as sex, leukocyte and lymphocyte counts remained significantly elevated in smokers. Notably, cumulative smoking exposure was identified as an independent factor of higher leukocyte levels, increasing the adjusted R² of the model from 0.015 to 0.113. These findings suggest that chronic tobacco exposure may contribute to systemic inflammation and alterations in the leukocyte profile.
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