TOBACCO SMOKING-HABITS AND ATTITUDES OF AUSTRALIANS WITH ORAL MUCOUS-MEMBRANE KERATOSES

The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether or not a relationship existed between the presence of oral mucous membrane keratoses and tobacco smoking habits. Two groups of tobacco smokers, one group exhibiting oral mucous membrane keratoses, and the other no such changes, were chosen for their similar smoking habits. Detailed tobacco smoking histories of each group were ascertained. Similar results for both groups, in terms of the number of years of smoking, quantity of tobacco consumed daily, type of tobacco smoked and the method of inhalation and exhalation were found. Eighty per cent of patients wanted to stop smoking with the fear of cancer being the major reason in the subjects with oral keratoses and the continued cost of smoking the major reason in the control subjects. In the affected patients the prevalence of white patches was not related to the quantity of tobacco consumed but rather to the number of years the subject had smoked.