Second-Hand Smoke Exposure Among Coronary Heart Disease Patients

PURPOSE: The objectives of this study were to assess second-hand smoke (SHS) exposure among coronary heart disease (CHD) patients at home, in transportation, workplace, public and social places; to examine the demographic factors that predict SHS exposure; and to investigate the relationship between SHS exposure and CHD complications, age at the time of diagnosis, and number of admissions in the last year. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional design was used with a convenient sample of 400 CHD patients from three hospitals in Jordan. A modified version of the Smoking Scale for Adults (SS-A) was used. RESULTS: The percentage of SHS exposure was 64% in public places, 51.5% in social places, 48.5% in the household, 31% in transportation, while it was only 14.8% in the workplace. In addition, being male, employed, having a younger age and lower education significantly predicted higher exposure to SHS. Exposure to SHS was positively associated with CHD complications and the number of admissions, while it was negatively associated with the age at diagnosis with CHD. CONCLUSION: Collaboration is needed among all health care sectors to adopt educational strategies about SHS exposure and to activate policies to prohibit smoking in public places.