[Smoking and acute cerebrovascular disorders of the ischemic type]

In order to define the relationships between cigarette smoking and occurrence of cerebrovascular disease, a retrospective study was undertaken regarding smoking habits of 187 patients (129 men and 58 women) with cerebral infarct of non-embolic origin and 85 patients (40 men and 45 women) with TIA (transient ischemic attacks). Each patient was matched with a control subject, of the same sex and age group, who showed no signs or symptoms of cerebrovascular disease. Results show a statistically significant association between smoking habits and cerebral infarcts only in male subjects who smoked more than 20 cigarettes a day.