A Scanning Electron Microscopic Study of Smoking and Age-Related Changes in Human Nasal Epithelium

Abstract

The nose is known to undergo dysfunctional changes as people age, probably due to exposure to agents such as smoking, environmental pollutants, and microbes. A morphologic expression of these insults might be a change in the number of ciliated cells present in the nasal mucosa. This study revealed that smoking and age were not related to a reduction in the number of ciliated cells of the inferior turbinate. Other factors, such as changes in the viscoelastic properties of mucus, may be the cause of senescent nasal symptoms such as drying and crusting.