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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Jonathan Samet, MD, MS¹, Terry Pechacek, PhD², Stephen Babb, MPH², and Umed Ajani, MBBS, MPH². (1) Institute for Global Tobacco Control, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, 410 955 3286, jsamet@jhsph.edu, (2) Office on Smoking and Health, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 3005 Chamblee Tucker Rd, Atlanta, GA 30341

CDC has concluded that secondhand smoke causes heart disease in nonsmoking adults. Secondhand smoke causes an estimated 35,000 heart disease deaths each year among U.S. nonsmokers--more than 10 times as many deaths as lung cancer caused by secondhand smoke. Yet many Americans are unaware that secondhand smoke exposure is a risk factor for heart disease.

Recent studies have indicated a number of physiologic mechanisms by which even brief secondhand smoke exposures can damage the cardiovascular system. These studies have also provided a plausible explanation for epidemiologic studies that show that the dose-response relationship between tobacco smoke and heart disease risk is nonlinear, with secondhand smoke exposure being associated with large increases in risk relative to active smoking. This research also suggests that people who already have or are at special risk for heart disease should be especially careful to avoid secondhand smoke exposure.

This session will provide an overview of the scientific evidence on the association between secondhand smoke exposure and heart disease that is reviewed in the 2006 Surgeon General's Report on the Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke. The presenters will also address the implications of this evidence for health care providers and public health practitioners.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participant in this session will be able to

• Describe the current scientific evidence on the link between secondhand smoke exposure and heart disease.
• Describe how even brief secondhand smoke exposure can damage the cardiovascular system.
• Describe the implications of these findings.

Keywords: Heart Disease, Environmental Exposures

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered