Cigarette smoking and the degree of maturation of the vaginal squamous epithelium in postmenopausal women.

To determine the effects of cigarette smoking on vaginal squamous epithelium in postmenopausal women, we studied the vaginal smear patterns of 199 healthy postmenopausal non-smokers and 41 healthy postmenopausal smokers, with a mean age of 56 years. A statistically significant difference to the hazard of smokers was found in the percentage of smears manifesting absence of maturation of vaginal squamous cells. A high incidence of atrophic-type vaginal smears in the group of smokers was also found independent of postmenopausal age.

Spontaneous abortions with increased CD5 positive cells in the placental tissue during the first trimester of gestation.

Most spontaneous abortions occur before 12 weeks' gestation, and most are due to chromosomal errors in the conceptus. Relatively few truly spontaneous abortions take place between 12 and 20 weeks' gestation. Thereafter, between 20 and 30 weeks another type of premature spontaneous termination due to ascending infection becomes prevalent.