Passive smoking, or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure, is a significant public health concern. It is widespread and has been implicated in excess cardiovascular mortality.1 In the United States, as many as 50 000 cardiovascular deaths per year may be attributable to passive smoking. The mechanisms by which passive smoking may increase cardiovascular risk are becoming increasingly clear...

Adiponectin is a cytokine with both proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory properties that is expressed in epithelial cells in the airway in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-emphysema (COPD-E). To determine whether adiponectin modulates levels of lung inflammation in tobacco smoke-induced COPD-E, we used a mouse model of COPD-E in which either adiponectin-deficient or wild-type (WT) mice we...

The etiology of ulcerative colitis (UC) remains unknown, although the risk of developing UC is apparently higher in non-smokers and ex-smokers. We have demonstrated in a colitis animal model that exposure to tobacco smoke could attenuate UC pathogenesis. The present study aimed to investigate and compare between the modes of action of nicotine and different fractions of tobacco smoke extract in...

OBJECTIVE To determine whether exposure to environmental tobacco smoke was associated with oxidative stress among patients hospitalised for acute myocardial infarction. DESIGN An existing cohort study of 1,261 patients hospitalised for acute myocardial infarction. SETTING Nine acute hospitals in Scotland. PARTICIPANTS Sixty never smokers who had been exposed to environmental tobacco smoke...

INTRODUCTION Secondhand smoke is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. It has been associated with serious health problems in both children and adults. Efforts to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke in Nebraska have included programs to prevent tobacco use among young people and campaigns for smoke-free workplaces and homes. Despite these interventions, young people continue to be exposed t...

The aim of this analysis was to examine the effect of environmental tobacco smoke exposure on the risk of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) birth. The study population included 2,283 nonsmokers from a nested cohort study undertaken in southern Connecticut from 1988 to 1992. The duration and intensity of exposures incurred at multiple locations during the third trimester of pregnancy were measured...

Individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) associated with biomass smoke inhalation tend to be women born in rural areas with lifelong exposure to open fires while cooking, but can also include persons with prenatal and childhood exposure. Compared with individuals with COPD due to tobacco smoking, individuals exposed to biomass smoke uncommonly have severe airflow obstructio...

The rate of smoking in Brazil is about 18.8%. Exposure to environmental tobacco smoke is one of the major factors predisposing children to several hazardous health problems. The objective of the present research was to analyze the effect of tobacco smoke exposure during childhood on cochlear physiology by measuring the transient evoked otoacoustic emissions (TEOAE) response levels. Cotinine, th...

Previous studies on patients with breast cancer, who received postsurgical irradiation, displayed a markedly suppressed inflammatory response in the lung of smoking patients compared to nonsmokers. The aim of the present study was to investigate further the effect of exposure to tobacco smoke on the development of irradiation-induced pneumonitis in the rat. Four groups of animals were used: con...

Tobacco smoke-induced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a prolonged inflammatory condition of the lungs characterized by progressive and largely irreversible airflow limitation attributable to a number of pathologic mechanisms, including bronchitis, bronchiolitis, emphysema, mucus plugging, pulmonary hypertension, and small-airway obstruction. Soluble epoxide hydrolase inhibitors ...