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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – DALLAS, Nov. 3, 2011 — The region of the brain damaged by stroke and their intention to quit smoking before having their stroke influence patients giving up the habit, based on research reported in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.
“We found that both biological and psychological factors may influence
someone’s smoking status after a stroke,” said Rosa Suñer,
Ph.D., lead author of the study, researcher at the Josep Trueta
Hospital, Neurology Department, IdiBGi, and professor of nursing,
Girona University in Girona, Spain.
One hundred and ten stroke survivors, who were smokers when they had a
stroke, were studied for up to a year after being discharged from the
hospital. For these patients, researchers evaluated smoking history and
medical information such as type and location of stroke, functional
state of the patient at discharge and their length of hospital stay.
They found:
— At the time of discharge, 76 out of the 110 patients had quit smoking.
But after a year, only 44 remained non-smokers.
— Those who had planned to stop smoking before having a stroke were more
than twice as likely to be non-smokers after a year compared to patients
who hadn’t considered stopping.
— Before their strokes, only a third of the people were aware that smoking
was a risk factor for stroke; a third weren’t aware it was a risk
factor; and a third thought smoking wasn’t a risk factor.
— Patients who had experienced damage to the brain’s insular cortex were
more than twice as likely to be a non-smoker after a year compared to
patients whose brain injury was elsewhere. The insular cortex is a part
of the brain involved in processing emotions.
— Prior to their strokes, participants smoked an average 28 cigarettes a
day and had started smoking at an average age of 17.
“Many ongoing studies looking at the link between different areas of
the brain and addiction are discovering that the insular cortex plays a
very important role,” Suñer said. “Public knowledge of the link
between smoking and stroke is not as strong as it is with other
diseases. The information gained from this study may help tailor
individual treatment and education programs for smokers after stroke.”
Smokers are two to three times more likely to suffer a stroke than
non-smokers, but if the smoker quits, their risk returns to normal
between two and five years later, said researchers.
Co-authors are Armando Grau, M.D., Ph.D.; Maria Eugenia Gras, Ph.D.;
Sílvia Font-Mayolas, Ph.D.; Yolanda Silva, M.D., Ph.D.; Antonio
Dávalos, M.D., Ph.D.; Verónica Cruz, R.N.; Joana Rodrigo,
R.N.; and Joaquín Serena, M.D., Ph.D. Author disclosures are on
the manuscript.
Statements and conclusions of study authors published in American Heart
Association scientific journals are solely those of the study authors
and do not necessarily reflect the association’s policy or position.
The association makes no representation or guarantee as to their
accuracy or reliability. The association receives funding primarily
from individuals; foundations and corporations (including
pharmaceutical, device manufacturers and other companies) also make
donations and fund specific association programs and events. The
association has strict policies to prevent these relationships from
influencing the science content. Revenues from pharmaceutical and
device corporations are available at
http://www.heart.org/corporatefunding.
NR11 — 1154 (Stroke/Suñer)
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