Smoking Related Attention Alteration in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease-Smoking Comorbidity

Abstract

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a respiratory disease that causes a wide range of cognitive impairments. Although chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-smoking comorbidity is common, the relationship between smoking and cognitive function in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-smoking comorbidity remains unclear. In this study, we recruited 85 participants, including 42 patients with Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(20 smokers and 22 non-smokers) and 43 healthy participants(22 smokers and 21 non-smokers). And we used the Montreal Cognitive Assessment scale and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging to explore effects of smoking on attention in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Behavioral analysis revealed that smokers had a shorter course of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and showed a worse attention performance in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-smoking comorbidity compared to non-smokers. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging analysis revealed that smokers showed lower regional homogeneity value of the fusiform gyrus in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-smoking comorbidity than non-smokers. Importantly, the regional homogeneity of the fusiform gyrus was positively associated with attention and mediates the effect of smoking on attention in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In summary, our study provides behavioral and neurobiological evidence supporting the positive effect of smoking on attention in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. This may be helpful for understanding and treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and even other diseases comorbid with smoking.