Does Maras powder affect the nasal mucociliary clearence?

• Published in: European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology 2022-12, Vol.279 (12), p.5701-5706
• Main Authors: Kara, İrfan, Cınar, Omer Faruk, Doğaner, Adem, Yıldız, Muhammed Gazi, Sağıroğlu, Saime, Bilal, Nagihan, Orhan, Israfil
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cigarette Smoking; Head and Neck Surgery; Humans; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Mucociliary Clearance; Neurosurgery; Nose; Otorhinolaryngology; Powders; Rhinology; Tobacco, Smokeless - adverse effects
• ISSN: 0937-4477; 1434-4726
• DOI: 10.1007/s00405-022-07487-4

Purpose Many studies have been conducted about the effect of cigarettes and other tobacco products on mucociliary clearance. However, there has been no study of the relationship between mucociliary clearance and Maras powder, which is a smokeless tobacco product. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of Maras powder use on mucociliary clearance through comparisons with cigarette smokers and those who used no tobacco products. Methods The study included 75 male volunteers, aged 23–54 years. Group 1 ( n : 25) comprised subjects who do not use any tobacco products, Group 2 ( n : 25) those who smoked cigarettes, and Group 3 ( n : 25) those who used Maraş powder. The saccharin test was used to evaluate mucociliary clearance and the time was recorded in seconds. The groups were statistically compared in respect of mean age and mucociliary clearance time (MCCT). Results The mean MCCT was determined to be 645.8 ± 200 secs for the whole study sample, 497 ± 108 secs for Group 1, 796 ± 200 secs for Group 2, and 644 ± 161 secs for Group 3. The difference between the groups in respect of MCCT was statistically significant ( p