Cigarette smokers may be prone to having silent peptic ulcer disease.

This study clarified the role of cigarette smoking in the development of silent (asymptomatic) peptic ulcer disease (PUD). Data on the smoking habits of 23 patients with peptic ulcer were obtained from hospital records.

Researchers found out that a high percentage of the patients with asymptomatic peptic ulcer disease were cigarette smokers. This study affirmed that smoking may be a contributing factor for the development of silent peptic ulcer disease.