Cigarette Smoking Is Associated With Low Glomerular Filtration Rate in Male Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: Response to Saito et al.
Response to Saito et al.
0
Unit of Nephrology, Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Foggia
,
Foggia
,
Italy; and the
1
Unit of Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, Department of Medical Sci- ences, University of Foggia
,
Foggia
,
Italy; the
2
Unit of Endocrinology, the Scientific In- stitute Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza
,
San Giovanni Rotondo, Foggia
,
Italy; the
3
Depart- ment of Clinical Sciences, University of Rome La Sapienza
,
Rome
,
Italy.
MD, Unit of Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, Department of Medical Sciences, University of Fog- gia
,
via Luigi Pinto, 71100 Foggia
,
Italy
-
W interest and comments regarding
e thank Saito et al. (1) for their
our recent article (2). They
suggest that the absence of positive
correlation between the number of cigarettes
smoked per day and severity of
nephropathy, as expressed by low glomular
filtration rate, might be due to the exclusion of
ex-smokers in the analysis. This is
possible, given the fact that some studies (3,4)
(though not all [5]) including ex-smokers
have found the above-mentioned
correlation. In fact, both options (i.e., ex-smokers
being either included or excluded) have
their own rationale (3 6). In our specific
context, we decided to design a study
aimed at investigating the role of current
smoking in modulating the risk of having
low glomular filtration rate. Including
exsmokers could weaken the result
obtained and conceal the role played by
exposure to tobacco smoke on oxidative
stress, as we have shown. However, we do
acknowledge that the alternative
approach, including ex-smokers, would
have been equally appropriate if aimed at
also determining the effect of previous
smoking habit.
SALVATORE DE COSMO, MD1
OLGA LAMACCHIA, MD2
LORETO GESUALDO, MD3
VINCENZO TRISCHITTA, MD1,4
MAURO CIGNARELLI, MD2
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