Association of cigarette consumption and mucosal thickening in the paranasal sinuses on MRI

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the impact of cigarette consumption on mucosal thickening in paranasal sinuses and the relationships of smoking-related factors and dental status with mucosal thickening at different maxillary sinus locations using MRI. Materials and methods: This retrospective study investigated 1094 paranasal sinuses on MRIs by correlating mucosal thickening with smoking-related factors. Presence/absence of maxillary posterior teeth was correlated with mucosal thickening on the maxillary sinus floor and other sinus locations. Results: Compared with nonsmokers, current and former smokers exhibited similarly more mucosal thickening in the maxillary (58.9%/62.8% vs 38.3%, P < .01) and ethmoid (22.7%/17.1% vs 6.6%, P < .01) sinuses, but not in the sphenoid sinus (P = .08) and similarly more mucosal thickening on the medial/superior walls of the maxillary sinus (40.4%/41.5% vs 18.4%, P < .01). Patients with mucosal thickening in the maxillary and ethmoid sinuses had greater daily cigarette consumption and years of smoking than those without mucosal thickening in these sinuses (P < .01). Edentulous individuals had more mucosal thickening on the maxillary sinus floor compared to dentate individuals (43.7% vs 32.2%, P < .01). Conclusion: Cigarette consumption is associated with increased mucosal thickening in paranasal sinuses, with a dose-response association. This thickening may be persistent after quitting smoking. Cigarette smoking may have a more pronounced impact on the sinus mucosa in areas near the primary maxillary ostium, while dental status may be more likely to affect that on the maxillary sinus floor.