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Pulmonary function, smoking cessation and 30 year mortality in middle aged Finnish men
M Pelkonen1, H Tukiainen, M Tervahauta
1University of Kuopio, Department of Public Health and General Practice, Kuopio, Finland. Margit.Pelkonen@uku.fi
Thorax
|August 19, 2000
Summary
Quitting smoking improves survival across all levels of lung function. Smokers who stop smoking live longer, with significant reductions in all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, regardless of baseline pulmonary function.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Pulmonology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Impaired pulmonary function predicts mortality; smoking reduces pulmonary function.
- Limited data exist on smoking cessation's long-term mortality impact across varying pulmonary function levels.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effect of smoking cessation on mortality across the full spectrum of baseline pulmonary function.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of Finnish male participants (aged 40-59) in the Seven Countries Study (1959-1989).
- Comparison of mortality rates between continuous smokers and those who quit during follow-up.
- Assessment of forced expiratory volume in 0.75 seconds (FEV(0.75)) and its association with mortality.
Main Results:
- Reduced forced expiratory volume in 0.75 seconds (FEV(0.75)) strongly correlated with increased all-cause mortality.
- Smoking cessation was associated with decreased all-cause mortality (HR 0.71).
- Quitters experienced longer median survival times; cardiovascular mortality was significantly lower (HR 0.60).
Conclusions:
- Smokers, irrespective of their pulmonary function level, can extend their lifespan by quitting smoking.
- Smoking cessation offers substantial benefits for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality reduction.