title: Characteristics of smokers and long-term changes in smoking behavior in consecutive patients with myocardial infarction.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The prognosis of patients with estabLished coronary artery improves if smoking is stopped. Still, about half of patients who suffer a myocardial infarction continue smoking after that event. In order to predict to whom additional support should be offered, various baseline characteristics were compared with smoking status at short-term and long-term follow-up.
  
  
  METHODS
  Demographics, medical history, presence of coronary risk factors, psychological determinants, and the clinical course were recorded in a group of 530 unselected consecutive patients who had been admitted with a myocardial infarction and were smoking. Patients who were smoking at admission, and who were alive at 4-year follow-up, were studied to relate smoking status and baseline characteristics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At 3 months, persistent smokers were younger than quitters, had shorter hospital stays, underwent revascularization procedures less often, smoked more cigarettes per day at baseline, and were more socially isolated. After 4 years, patients who stopped smoking had had a more serious myocardial infarction and had a lower displeasure score than those who continued smoking. Also, quitters received more support from their social environment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the majority of the patients try to stop smoking after a myocardial infarction, about half smokes after 4 years. In the future, special support should be offered to smokers who suffer myocardial infarction, especially to those whose psychosocial profiles are less favorable.
authors.affiliation: Thoraxcenter, University Hospital Rotterdam, The Netherlands. vanberkel@card.azr.nl
authors.forename: T F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: van Berkel
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: van der Vlugt
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Boersma
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D009664:Norway / Q000453:epidemiology; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012016:Reference Values; D012042:Registries; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D015996:Survival Rate