Smoking : brain hemorrhage risk

Smoking boosts brain hemorrhage risk in those with family history

Last Updated: 2009-01-09 14:00:12 -0400 (Reuters Health)

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Smokers with a family history of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage have six times the risk of suffering the same fate, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Although smoking history and subarachnoid hemorrhage both aggregate within families, the potential for a gene-environment interaction affecting an individual's risk is unknown, Dr. Daniel Woo and co-investigators note in the January 6th issue of Neurology.

"Evidence for a gene-environment interaction," they note, "may have significant implications for screening family members of patients with an aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage, analysis of genetic association studies, and counseling of family members regarding smoking behavior."/.../