Pack year

A pack year is a quantification of cigarette smoking.

## Contents

* 1 Definition
* 2 Calculating 'Pack Years'
* 3 Significance and Usage
* 4 References

## Definition[edit | edit source]

A way to measure the amount a person has smoked over a long period of time. It is calculated by multiplying the number of packs of cigarettes smoked per day by the number of years the person has smoked. For example, 1 pack year is equal to smoking 1 pack per day for 1 year, or 2 packs per day for half a year, and so on.[1]

## Calculating 'Pack Years'[edit | edit source]

Number of pack years = (number of cigarettes smoked per day x number of years smoked)/20

For example: a patient who has smoked 15 cigarettes a day for 40 years has a (15x40)/20 = 30 pack year smoking history. (1 pack has 20 cigarettes).

A pack-year is smoking 20 cigarettes a day for one year. If someone has smoked ten cigarettes a day for six years they would have a three pack-year history. Someone who has smoked forty cigarettes daily for twenty years has a forty pack-year history.

## Significance and Usage[edit | edit source]

Quantification of pack years smoked is important in clinical care where degree of tobacco exposure is closely correlated to risk of disease.

## References[edit | edit source]

1. ↑ http://www.cancer.gov/Templates/db_alpha.aspx?CdrID=306510 National Cancer Institute Definition of Pack Year

de:Packungsjahr

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