Smokers run three times the risk of sudden death compared with non-smokers. Aortic aneurysm is a ballooning of the aortic artery wall at the point of the artery weakened by the pressure from blood flow. This aneurysm can rupture, with life-threatening consequences. For smokers, the risk of a ruptured aortic aneurysm is up to eight times that for non-smokers. Stroke or cerebrovascular accident, is an interruption of blood supply to the brain, which can result from atherosclerosis or high blood pressure.
Smoking is a contributing factor, especially in younger people.
Peripheral vascular disease is a disease of the blood vessels in the legs caused by atherosclerosis. Cigarette smoking is the most important risk factor for this disease, which is rarely found in non-smokers. Peripheral vascular disease can lead to painful leg ulcers which are slow to heal and eventually leads to gangrene, resulting in amputation of the limb. Malignant hypertension is more common in smokers than non-smokers. Women who take the contraceptive pill and who smoke, face up to 39 times greater risk of having either a heart attach or stroke than women who neither smoke nor take the pill.