What is the effect of smoking on stroke recurrence?
Studies have found that smoking increases the risk of stroke recurrence. A longitudinal study in Han Chinese individuals with ischemic stroke found an adjusted HR for smokers at 1 year of 3.0. The Cardiovascular Health Study identified a substantially increased risk of stroke recurrence in elderly smokers. The SMART study also identified that smoking cessation increases life expectancy and recurrent major atherosclerotic cardiovascular events occur 10 years later compared with persisting smokers.