Smoking effect on skin wrinkling in the aged population

Abstract

Objectives: Smoking causes premature wrinkling and is one of the more potent risk factors for atherosclerosis. The aims of the present study were to verify: (i) whether there is a difference between the wrinkling appearance in aged smokers and the nonsmoking population; and (ii) whether the systemic effects of smoking, such as atherothrombotic disease and cerebrovascular disease, are associated with a more striking appearance of wrinkling. Participants: Eighty volunteers (mean age, 76 years) were included in the study, 40 of whom were smokers and 20 of whom had suffered a stroke. Results: The mean value of the wrinkling score measured for the smokers' group (stroke and nonstroke) was significantly higher than that for the nonsmokers' group (analysis of variance, ANOVA; P < 0.01). There was no significant difference between the smokers who had suffered from stroke and smokers who had not. Conclusion: The study indicated that prominent facial wrinkling was significantly more common among smokers than nonsmokers, not only in the relatively young but also among the aged population.