Objective: The etiology of nicotinic stomatitis is strongly linked with nicotine compounds; however, high temperature can be synergistic to the damage of tobacco compounds. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the separate and combined effects of smoking and heat applied by hot drinks as predictors for the development of nicotinic stomatitis in a population from southern Brazil.
Method and materials: In a case-control study, 53 patients of both sexes with a median age of 43 years (18 to 83 years) with the clinical diagnosis of nicotinic stomatitis were selected consecutively. They were paired with 53 control subjects, matched for sex, race, and smoking and tea, maté (chimarrão), alcohol, and coffee consumption. The collected data were analyzed by means of descriptive statistics; chi-square test and risk estimation were also employed. The independent variables considered significant were analyzed using a multivariate model of multinomial logistic regression (P < .05 was considered statistically significant).
Results: Nicotinic stomatitis was more prevalent in smokers (60.00%) than nonsmokers (39.21%) (OR = 2.32; CI 95% 1.06-5.06), and in subjects who drank hot drinks (maté drink and regular tea or coffee) than in subjects who did not drink this combination (OR = 2.84; CI 95% 1.05-7.63).
Conclusion: The combination of smoking and heat from hot drinks could best predict the appearance of nicotinic stomatitis.