A Study of the Exfoliative Cytology of the Hard Palate and Buccal Mucosa Following Cessation of Smoking in Previous Smokers

¹ Dental Service, Veterans Administration Hospital, New York 10, N.Y.

Oral exfoliative cytology was employed, in order to observe changes in keratinization of the palate and buccal mucosa following cessation of smoking.

Eleven male New York University College of Dentistry students, varying in age from twenty-one to thirty-five years, volunteered for this study.

Scrapings were taken on alternate days of the palate and buccal mucosa for (1) 2 weeks while the men continued smoking; (2) 4 weeks while the men ceased smoking; and (3) 2 weeks when the men resumed smoking.

No definite change in the pattern of oral exfoliative cytology could be observed following the cessation of smoking in our group of volunteers.

When the average cell count of each individual was compared with the findings of the entire group, the average number of anucleated yellow-staining cells and green-staining cells did not present a specific pattern for each individual.

These findings do not preclude the possibility that smoking may affect oral keratinization patterns; however, under the limitations of this experiment, this difference could not be ascertained.

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