Effects of smoking on the cardiopulmonary modulation during physical exercise in middle-aged non-obese healthy individuals

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the overall effects of smoking and its duration on various cardiopulmonary modulation mechanisms during physical exercise in middle-aged non-obese healthy individuals. Materials and Methods: Two hundred forty-three (142 smokers and 101 non-smokers), middle-aged, non-obese, healthy individuals were evaluated in this cross-sectional study. Parameters of pulmonary function including forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1) and FEV1/FVC ratio were evaluated using a spirometer and systolic pulmonary artery pressure (sPAP) were measured by echocardiography on rest and during various levels of exercise. A treadmill exercise test was used to assess heart rate recovery index (HRRI), the chronotropic index (CI) and the maximum rate of oxygen consumption during exercise (VO2max). Results: Resting sPAP values were higher and FEV1, FVC and FEV1/FVC values were lower among smokers. As compared to resting values; FEV1 and FEV1/FVC ratio in smokers decreased significantly at peak exercise level (2.66±0.54 vs 2.35±0.49, p