REVIEW ER 'S CONCLUSIONS Quitting smoking is associated with a substantial reduction in risk of all-cause mortality among patients with CHD .
This 36 % risk reduction appears substantial compared with other secondary preventive therapies such as cholesterol lowering which have received greater attention in recent years .
The risk reduction associated with quitting smoking seems consistent regardless of differences between the studies in terms of index cardiac events , age , sex , country , and time period .
BACKGROUND Although the importance of smoking as a risk factor for coronary heart disease is beyond doubt , the speed and magnitude of risk reduction when a smoker with coronary heart disease quits are still subjects of debate .
OBJECTIVES To estimate the magnitude of risk reduction when a patient with CHD stops smoking .
Risk of New Myocardial Infarction in Middle‐aged Men with Manifest Coronary Heart Disease
Men incurring coronary heart disease ( CHD ) during surveillance of an employed population were studied for risk factors associated with additional myocardial infa rct ions . The coronaryprone Type A behavior pattern measured by a  test score , number of cigarettes smoked daily , and serum cholesterol  were significant discriminators between the 67 men with recurrent CHD and the 220 with but a single clinical CHD event .  Diastolic blood pressure and fasting serum triglycerides were not significant discriminators . Statistical analyses directed to possible sources of bias occasioned by the combined retrospective- prospect i ve study design revealed that these problems are negligible and do not alter the findings observed . Type A score appears relatively unaffected by whether the measure was made before or after the initial CHD event . Multivariable discriminant function equations showed Type A score to be the strongest single predictor of recurrent CHD among the variables available . Number of cigarettes smoked and serum cholesterol accounted for additional variance . Future field trials for the secondary prevention of myocardial infa rct ion would be strengthened by consideration of the possible role of Type A behavior
REVIEW ER 'S CONCLUSIONS Quitting smoking is associated with a substantial reduction in risk of all-cause mortality among patients with CHD .
This 36 % risk reduction appears substantial compared with other secondary preventive therapies such as cholesterol lowering which have received greater attention in recent years .
The risk reduction associated with quitting smoking seems consistent regardless of differences between the studies in terms of index cardiac events , age , sex , country , and time period .
BACKGROUND Although the importance of smoking as a risk factor for coronary heart disease is beyond doubt , the speed and magnitude of risk reduction when a smoker with coronary heart disease quits are still subjects of debate .
OBJECTIVES To estimate the magnitude of risk reduction when a patient with CHD stops smoking .