• Pierre-Olivier Bridevaux, Jacques Cornuz, Jean-Michel Gaspoz, Bernard Burnand, Ursula Ackermann-Liebrich, Christian Schindler, Philippe Leuenberger, Thierry Rochat, Margaret W Gerbase, and SAPALDIA Team.
• Division of Pulmonary Medicine, University Hospitals of Geneva, 24 rue Micheli-du-Crest, 1211, Geneva, Switzerland.
• Arch Intern Med. 2007 Dec 10;167(22):2516-23.

BackgroundAlthough secondhand smoke (SHS) has been linked with various respiratory conditions and symptoms, its association with health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is unknown.MethodsA cross-sectional study was performed of 2500 never smokers in Switzerland who participated in the Swiss Cohort Study on Air Pollution and Lung Diseases in Adults and completed a 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) in 2002. Using linear regression models adjusting for confounders, we measured the association between HRQOL and moderate or high SHS exposure (< or =3 h/d or >3 h/d) compared with no SHS exposure. Data from men and women were analyzed separately and further stratified by source of SHS (home, workplace, and public spaces).ResultsAfter adjustments, SHS was associated with reduced scores in all SF-36 domains. High SHS exposure predicted a greater reduction in HRQOL. Compared with nonexposed women, those with high SHS exposure at home had significantly lower scores on the physical functioning (-7.8, P < .001), role physical (-10.5, P = .02), bodily pain (-9.2, P = .01), and social functioning (-8.1, P = .007) domains. Exposed men had lower scores for the role physical domain (-20.0, P < .001) and a trend toward lower scores in other domains. In women, exposure to SHS at home was associated with a stronger negative effect on HRQOL than at work and in public spaces.ConclusionsSecondhand smoke is associated with reduced HRQOL, more significantly so in women. Exposure to SHS at home and high levels of exposure are associated with lower SF-36 scores, suggesting a dose-response relationship.

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