Key Points
- To evaluate the six-year clinical outcomes of smoking cessation compared to continued smoking among older men and women with angiographically documented coronary artery disease.
- Analyzed a registry cohort of 1,893 patients aged 55 years or older with angiographically confirmed coronary artery disease from the Coronary Artery Surgery Study (CASS).
- Compared six-year survival and cardiac events between continuing smokers (n = 1,086) and sustained quitters who stopped during the year before enrollment and remained abstinent (n = 807).
- Six-year mortality was significantly elevated among continuing smokers compared to sustained quitters (relative risk [RR] 1.7, 95% CI 1.4–2.0).
- Continuing smokers had a higher risk of either myocardial infarction or death (RR 1.5, 95% CI 1.2–1.7), with mortality risks showing no diminution with age (RR 1.7, 95% CI 1.4–2.1 for ages 55–64; RR 1.6, 95% CI 1.1–2.3 for ages ≥65).
- Analysis by risk quartile demonstrated that the survival advantage of smoking cessation was most pronounced in patients at moderate baseline risk.
Structured PICO
Does smoking cessation reduce mortality and myocardial infarction in older adults with coronary artery disease?
PPopulation1,893 men and women aged 55 years or older with angiographically documented coronary artery disease from the Coronary Artery Surgery Study (CASS) registry.
IInterventionSmoking cessation (quit smoking during the year before enrollment and abstained throughout the study, n=807).
CComparatorContinuing smoking (n=1086).
OOutcomeSix-year mortality rate.hard clinical
Smoking cessation significantly reduces the risk of death and myocardial infarction in older patients with coronary artery disease, demonstrating that the benefits of quitting are not diminished by advanced age.