ABRAHAM J,ASHIQ BASHA A,RAMNATH V,PRAVEENKUMAR S,SASIDHARAN S
DOI: https://doi.org/Smoking is a well-established risk factor for cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases. Chronic tobacco use may lead to structural alterations in the heart and thoracic cavity, potentially manifesting as an increased cardiothoracic ratio (CTR) on chest radiographs. The CTR, a widely used radiological parameter, provides a non-invasive method to screen for cardiomegaly. This study aims to investigate whether a significant difference in CTR exists between smokers and non-smokers. To compare the cardiothoracic ratio observed in chest X-rays between smokers and non- smokers and to determine the prevalence of cardiomegaly in each group. A Prospective cross-sectional study will be conducted using posteroanterior (PA) chest X- rays from adults aged 18–75 years. Participants will becategorized into smokers (current or former)andnon-smokers (never smoked or minimal exposure) based on medical history. The CTR will be calculated by dividing the maximum transverse cardiac diameter by the internal thoracic diameter. Data will be analyzed using independent t-tests and chi-square tests to assess statistical significance, with a p-value < 0.05 considered significant. It is anticipated that smokers will exhibit a higher mean CTR compared to non-smokers, with a greater proportion exceeding the threshold value of 0.50, indicating a higher prevalence of cardiomegaly. These findings are expected to support the hypothesis that smoking contributes to adverse structural cardiac changes detectable on routine chest radiographs. This study highlights a potential association between smoking and increased cardiothoracic ratio (CTR), suggesting that chronic tobacco use may contribute to structural cardiac changes detectable on chest radiographs.
