Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between personal behaviors (smoking and alcohol consumption) and contracting pulmonary tuberculosis.
Methods: 346 persons (173 cases and 173 controls) were selected from 12 communities of Chengdu area, all the cases were active TB patients (by WHO criteria) from March 1996 to March 1997. Controls were matched for age, sex and living district. Subjects were interviewed face to face by trained interviewers using questionnaires.
Results: The results of univariate analysis showed that active smoking (OR = 2.12, P = 0.006), passive smoking (OR = 1.55, P = 0.04), type of cigarettes (OR = 1.31, P = 0.005) and alcohol consumption (OR = 1.81, P = 0.008) were significantly associated with TB. Yet, multivariate logistic regression analysis did not find smoking or alcohol consumption being in independent association with TB, but it showed that persons who were smokers with the addition of alcohol consumption had a higher risk to contract TB (OR = 7.729, 95% C.I. = 1.5215-39.2634). Significant association was noted in the dose-response analysis (OR = 1.73, 95% C.I. = 1.300-2.3028).
Conclusion: These data indicate that smoking alone or sole alcohol consumption bears no relationship with TB, but smoking plus alcohol abuse is probably a risk factor for pulmonary tuberculosis in Chengdu, and in this connection, a proposal of prospective study to further demonstrate this risk factor is warranted.