title: Parental smoking and vascular damage in young adult offspring: is early life exposure critical? The atherosclerosis risk in young adults study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Our purpose was to study the association between familial and particularly fetal tobacco smoke exposure and vascular damage in young adulthood.
  
  
  RESULTS
  From a cohort of 732 young adults, birth data were collected and in young adulthood ultrasound measurement of common carotid artery intima-media thickness (CIMT) was performed. Data on parental smoking were obtained by standardized questionnaires. Twenty-nine percent of the mothers smoked during pregnancy. Offspring of mothers who smoked had 13.4 microm thicker CIMT (95% CI: 5.5, 21.3; P=0.001) than offspring of mothers who did not smoke in pregnancy. Adjustment for known CIMT risk factors (participant's age, gender, BMI, pulse pressure, and LDL-cholesterol) yielded no change (9.4 microm, 95% CI: 1.9, 16.3, P=0.01) nor did adjustment for current smoking of parents (10.6 microm, 95% CI: 0.4 to 20.8, P=0.04), for participants' current smoking and pack-years (11.5 microm, 95% CI: 3.5 to 19.4, P=0.004) or for parental socioeconomic status (SES; 13.0 microm, 95% CI: 5.0, 21.1, P=0.002). Thicker CIMT was associated with exclusive paternal smoking in pregnancy, somewhat stronger with exclusive maternal smoking and strongest with both parents smoking (P (linear trend)=0.001). Offspring of particularly mothers who smoked an above median number of cigarettes in pregnancy had thicker CIMT than those smoking less than median or no cigarettes (P (linear trend) <0.0001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Permanent vascular damage is partly attributable to familial tobacco smoke exposure, an association that might be initiated in gestation.
authors.affiliation: Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Caroline C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Geerts
authors.forename: Michiel L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Bots
authors.forename: Diederick E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Grobbee
authors.forename: Cuno S P M
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Uiterwaal
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D017536:Carotid Artery, Common / Q000473:pathology; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005220:Fathers; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers; D009426:Netherlands; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D012307:Risk Factors; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects*; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000473:pathology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution