Death from Pneumococcal Pneumonia — Another Smoking-Related Risk

Smoking has multiple adverse effects on health, including increased risk for arteriosclerosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung cancer. Smoking also increases the risk for pneumococcal infections in general, and pneumonia in particular, but whether it also affects mortality from pneumococcal pneumonia is unclear.

To explore this issue, researchers in Spain conducted a secondary analysis involving a subgroup of patients in a prospective, multicenter, observational pneumonia study (892 adults hospitalized with pneumococcal community-acquired pneumonia [CAP] — 22.8% current smokers, 43.4% nonsmokers, and 33.7% ex-smokers). Compared with non–current smokers, current smokers were younger and were more likely to be male and to abuse…