Estimation of cigarette smoking-attributable morbidity in the United States

Abstract

Importance: Cigarette smoking has been found to harm nearly every bodily organ and is a leading cause of preventable disease, but current estimates of smoking-attributable morbidity by condition for the United States are generally unavailable.

Objective: To estimate the burden of major medical conditions attributable to cigarette smoking in the United States.

Design, setting, and participants: The disease burden of smoking was estimated using population-attributable risk calculations, taking into account the uncertainty of estimates. Population estimates came from 2009 US Census Bureau data and smoking prevalence, disease prevalence, and disease relative risk estimates came from National Health Interview Survey data for surveyed adults from 2006 through 2012. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey spirometry data obtained from medical examination of surveyed adults from 2007 through 2010 was used to adjust for underreporting of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Exposures: Smoking status was assessed from self-reported National Health Interview Survey data.

Main outcomes and measures: The number of adults 35 years and older who had had a major smoking-attributable disease by sex and condition and the total number of these conditions were estimated for the United States in 2009.

Results: Using National Health Interview Survey data, we estimated that 6.9 million (95% CI, 6.5-7.4 million) US adults had had a combined 10.9 million (95% CI, 10.3-11.5 million) self-reported smoking-attributable medical conditions. Using chronic obstructive pulmonary disease prevalence estimates obtained from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey self-reported and spirometry data, we estimated that US adults had had a combined 14.0 million (95% CI, 12.9-15.1 million) smoking-attributable conditions in 2009.

Conclusions and relevance: We estimate that US adults have had approximately 14 million major medical conditions that were attributable to smoking. This figure is generally conservative owing to the existence of other diseases and medical events that were not included in these estimates. Cigarette smoking remains a leading cause of preventable disease in the United States, underscoring the need for continuing and vigorous smoking-prevention efforts.