Behavior of Cardiac Variables in Animals Exposed to Cigarette Smoke Original Article

Among health hazards caused by smoking, cardio-vascular changes stand out. Smoking influences the pre-valence of infarction through several mechanisms, such as endothelial dysfunction, greater oxidation of LDL-choles-terol, a reduction in HDL-cholesterol, an increase in the le-vels of adhesion molecules and fibrinogen, an increase in platelet aggregation, and an increase in the prevalence of vascular spasm 1,2. English et al 3 were the first to report a close relation between smoking and mortality due to ische-mic heart disease, and they were followed by other authors who stressed that association 4,5. The proposed mechanisms, by which the constituents of cigarette smoke (carbon monoxide, nicotine, tar, and the substances contained in vapor) may cause myocardial in-farction, are as follows: thrombosis, formation of atheroscle