Abstract

Background: Tobacco smoking has detrimental influence on human health.

Aim: The analysis of influence of tobacco smoking on retina diseases, uveitis, optic neuropathies, and thyroidassociated orbitopathy in adults and children.

Methods: A comprehensive review of the literature performed through MEDLINE and PubMed searches, covering the years 2000-2016.

Results: In adults, tobacco smoking is a strong risk factor for age-related macular degeneration, polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy, uveitis and inflamed cystoid macular edema as well as Grave`s ophthalmopathy. Tobacco smoking reduces thickness of the retina and choroid, plays a role in episcleritis, sclerits, tobacco optic neuropathy, and Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy. In children, maternal smoking is a significant risk factor for stages 3 and 4 retinopathy of prematurity, optic nerve hypoplasia among babies with a birth weight over 2500 g and thinner retinal nerve fiber layer.

Conclusion: Tobacco smoking plays an important role in the pathogenesis of many posterior eye segment diseases leading to blindness in adults and children.

Keywords: Tobacco smoking, retinopathy, ocular inflammation, optic neuropathy, orbitopathy, adults, children.