Does an interaction between smoking and drinking influence the risk of Alzheimer's disease? Results from three Canadian data sets
✍ Scribed by Suzanne L. Tyas; John J. Koval; Linda L. Pederson
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 2000
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 99 KB
- Volume
- 19
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0277-6715
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Investigation of the relationship of smoking and drinking to Alzheimer's disease (AD) may advance research on the cause of AD and provide a basis for treatment. Pharmacological mechanisms for an involvement of smoking and drinking are plausible but epidemiologic reports are inconsistent. Evidence of behavioural and physiological interactions suggests that tobacco and alcohol use may not only individually a!ect AD, but may also modify each other's e!ects. A modelling strategy was developed to examine the interaction between smoking and drinking on the risk of AD. Three Canadian data sets were analysed: the University of Western Ontario Dementia Study (UWODS) (n"363); the Canadian Study of Health and Aging (CSHA) (n"516), and the database from the Clinic for Alzheimer Disease and Related Disorders at the Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, University of British Columbia site (UBC) (n"843). Multiple logistic regression models were adjusted for the potential confounders age, age squared, sex, education, family history of dementia, head injury and hypertension. Analysis of the CSHA provided evidence consistent with the hypothesis that smoking and drinking in#uence each other's e!ects on AD, with smoking reducing the risk of AD among drinkers. A similar interaction was marginally signi"cant (p"0.052) in the UWODS data set, but not signi"cant in the UBC data. Extension of these analyses, particularly in longitudinal studies and within genetic risk groups, is needed to determine whether this interaction can be replicated. If so, research on the biological interactions of nicotine and alcohol may provide a basis for the development of therapeutic interventions as well as providing clues to the cause of this disorder.