Heart Attacks Don't Sway Smokers
Heart Attacks Don't Sway Smokers
'Unbelievable' Number of Heart Patients Still Smoke, Dutch Expert Finds
Oct. 5, 2005 -- If you were a smoker, would you quit smoking if you had heart problems and your doctor told you to stop smoking?
Many European heart patients facing that situation kept on smoking, researchers report in the European Heart Journal.
They surveyed more than 5,500 heart patients between 1999 and 2000. About 2,200 had been smokers before being hospitalized for heart problems.
Although virtually all of the smokers (99%) reported being told by a doctor to quit smoking, less than half (48%) had done so.
Smoking is well known for raising the risk of many health problems, including heart disease and cancer, which are leading causes of death for both men and women.
The finding was "unbelievable," says researcher Wilma Scholte op Reimer, in a news release. She works in the cardiology department of Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
"It makes me wonder if they are truly aware of the risk that they are taking," op Reimer says.
The results were about the same as when the study was done five years earlier. The lack of improvement is "disappointing," op Reimer says.
She and her colleagues call for more work to drive the message home -- and to help smokers quit smoking.
The study included more than 5,500 people in 15 European countries who were less than 70 yeas old.
The patients had been hospitalized for heart attacks, balloon angioplasty to reopen arteries, coronary bypass grafts, or pain from insufficient blood flow to the heart (myocardial ischemia).
About 18 months later, they were interviewed about topics including whether they smoked cigarettes, cigars, or pipes.
Just in case anyone fudged, those who claimed to have quit smoking after heart hospitalization took a breath test to check for traces of carbon monoxide. Only those who passed the test were considered "stopped smokers."
Those smokers that quit were found to more likely be older, more educated, had had a heart attack, obese patients, and those still under the care of a cardiologist.
No big differences were seen in the percentages of men and women who quit smoking.
One other trend stood out. It concerned the way doctors delivered their quit-smoking message.
Heart Attacks Don't Sway Smokers
'Unbelievable' Number of Heart Patients Still Smoke, Dutch Expert Finds
Oct. 5, 2005 -- If you were a smoker, would you quit smoking if you had heart problems and your doctor told you to stop smoking?
Many European heart patients facing that situation kept on smoking, researchers report in the European Heart Journal.
They surveyed more than 5,500 heart patients between 1999 and 2000. About 2,200 had been smokers before being hospitalized for heart problems.
Although virtually all of the smokers (99%) reported being told by a doctor to quit smoking, less than half (48%) had done so.
Smoking is well known for raising the risk of many health problems, including heart disease and cancer, which are leading causes of death for both men and women.
Shocked Scientist Reacts
The finding was "unbelievable," says researcher Wilma Scholte op Reimer, in a news release. She works in the cardiology department of Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
"It makes me wonder if they are truly aware of the risk that they are taking," op Reimer says.
The results were about the same as when the study was done five years earlier. The lack of improvement is "disappointing," op Reimer says.
She and her colleagues call for more work to drive the message home -- and to help smokers quit smoking.
Study's Design
The study included more than 5,500 people in 15 European countries who were less than 70 yeas old.
The patients had been hospitalized for heart attacks, balloon angioplasty to reopen arteries, coronary bypass grafts, or pain from insufficient blood flow to the heart (myocardial ischemia).
About 18 months later, they were interviewed about topics including whether they smoked cigarettes, cigars, or pipes.
Just in case anyone fudged, those who claimed to have quit smoking after heart hospitalization took a breath test to check for traces of carbon monoxide. Only those who passed the test were considered "stopped smokers."
Who Quit Smoking, Who Didn't
Those smokers that quit were found to more likely be older, more educated, had had a heart attack, obese patients, and those still under the care of a cardiologist.
No big differences were seen in the percentages of men and women who quit smoking.
One other trend stood out. It concerned the way doctors delivered their quit-smoking message.
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