AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Smoking / 01.05.2018
Smoking: The Great Brain Drain
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Janina Markidan MS III, MD Student
University of Maryland School of Medicine
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: In a study of 1,145 young men, we found a strong dose-response relationship between the number of cigarettes smoked daily and the risk of ischemic stroke.
We categorized the participants as never smokers, former smokers and current smokers. Current smokers were divided into groups based on the number of cigarettes smoked daily, 1 to 10, 11 to 20, 21 to 39, or 40 or more.
We found that men who smoked were 88 percent more likely to have a stroke than men who never smoked. Among current smokers, men who smoked fewer than 11 cigarettes daily were 46 percent more likely to have a stroke than those who never smoked. But the heavier smokers, smoking at least two packs a day, were nearly 5 times (466%) more likely to have a stroke than those who never smoked. (more…)