Smoking, Smoking Status, and Risk for Symptomatic Peripheral Artery Disease in Women: A Cohort Study

Smoking has a well-documented detrimental effect on risk for myocardial infarction and stroke, but less information is available regarding peripheral artery disease (PAD), particularly among women. Conen et al assess the association of current smoking status, cumulative smoking exposure, and smoking cessation with incident symptomatic PAD in women at US female health care professionals in the Women's Health Study. They conclude that among initially healthy women, smoking is a potent risk factor for symptomatic PAD and was associated with subclinical inflammation. Smoking cessation substantially reduces risk for PAD, but an increased occurrence of PAD persists even among former smokers who maintain abstinence.