• Omer Tamer Dogan, Sahande Elagoz, Sefa Levent Ozsahin, Kursat Epozturk, Ersin Tuncer, and Ibrahim Akkurt.
• Department of Chest Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, Cumhuriyet University, Sivas, Turkey.
• Clinics (Sao Paulo). 2011 Jan 1; 66 (6): 108110871081-7.

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to examine the separate and combined effects of tobacco and biomass smoke exposure on pulmonary histopathology in rats.IntroductionIn addition to smoking, indoor pollution in developing countries contributes to the development of respiratory diseases.MethodsTwenty-eight adult rats were divided into four groups as follows: control group (Group I, no exposure to tobacco or biomass smoke), exposed to tobacco smoke (Group II), exposed to biomass smoke (Group III), and combined exposure to tobacco and biomass smoke (Group IV). After six months the rats in all four groups were sacrificed. Lung tissue samples were examined under light microscopy. The severity of pathological changes was scored.ResultsGroup II differed from Group I in all histopathological alterations except intraparenchymal vascular thrombosis. There was no statistically significant difference in histopathological changes between the subjects exposed exclusively to tobacco smoke (Group II) and those with combined exposure to tobacco and biomass smoke (Group IV). The histopathological changes observed in Group IV were found to be more severe than those in subjects exposed exclusively to biomass smoke (Group III).DiscussionChronic exposure to tobacco and biomass smoke caused an increase in severity and types of lung injury.ConclusionExposure to cigarette smoke caused serious damage to the respiratory system, particularly with concomitant exposure to biomass smoke.

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