We certainly know the various risks of exposing children to second hand smoke, but what about prenatal exposure? Are the effects of the smoke already taking a toll? Geerts et al. (doi: 10.1542/peds.2011-0249) believe so based on a study they performed that is released online this week. The investigators measured carotid artery thickness and arterial wall distensibility in a cohort of children at age five whose parents (both mothers and fathers) had or had not smoked during pregnancy. The results are quite stark and should be shared with any family that is smoking and pregnant at the same time. Given the vascular complications of primary tobacco smoke exposure that we know of in adults, it’s hard to believe that the same pathophysiology starts playing a role in a yet to be born infant and carries forward into their childhood, but it does. Share these results with families to make a dent in exposure of children to environmental tobacco smoke beginning with their time in utero.
Given the need to help parents stop smoking pre-or postnatally, Rosen et al. (doi: 10.1542/peds.2010-3209) share with us, in a timely systematic review, how successful 18 interventional clinical trials have been in getting parents to quit smoking and remain tobacco-free. While the ideas shared in these studies may be useful, there is much more to be done to find the ideal way to intervene and convince parents not to smoke. Nonetheless, this review article will give you plenty of ideas to try on your patients and hopefully make them and you breathe more easily knowing that by stopping smoking, they are making a difference in improving their children’s health as well as their own.
