[Relation between ischemic heart disease and tobacco smoking]

The incidence of ischaemic heart disease related to tobacco smoking was studied in a population of males aged 35-64 years in the Bródno District of Warsaw. The population comprised 2123 subjects (attendance rate 62%). A relationship was demonstrated between cigarette smoking in the past and the ischaemic heart disease, its incidence was twice as high in former smokers than in non-smokers. No significant difference was found in this incidence between non-smokers and present smokers. A more deep analysis shows that former smokers who quitted smoking due to intensification of clinical symptoms are frequently included into the group of non-smokers, and they are the group at highest risk for ischaemic heart disease development.