Association of Secondhand Smoke (SHS) Exposure with Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL): A Systematic Review

Abstract

Secondhand smoke (SHS) has been well established as one of risk factor for many diseases. Although exposure to SHS has been associated with various medical conditions, the evidence on the effect of it on health- related quality of life (HRQoL) is still limited. Therefore, the objective of this study is to examine the association between SHS with HRQoL. Terms and keywords relevant to secondhand smoking behaviors and HRQoL were used in a search of the electronic database. Three electronic databases (PubMed, Science Direct, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews) and Google Scholar were used. Searches were limited to English language, included papers: a) had clearly defined measures of SHS exposure and b) had clearly defined measures of outcome variables related to HRQoL. A total of 42 studies were initially retrieved and reviewed. After further review of references from the retrieved studies, 8 studies were finally selected that met all eligibility criteria. The reviewed studies consisted of three cross-sectional study analyses, two cohort studies, one longitudinal analysis and one study using bivariable and multivariable analysis. Those findings consisted of varied number of population and conducted from different countries. Exposure to SHS was associated with generally lower HRQoL, suggesting that detrimental effects of SHS exposure on HRQoL are not limited to patients with diseases (chronic disease, COPD, or heart failure) but also in healthy never smoking children and adult, both in man and woman. Our review study showed that SHS exposure towards healthy or people with disease, children, adult, both in man and woman were associated with decreased HRQoL. It can provide new evidence for stronger smoke-free policies on public places and promoting smoke-free homes.