A smoking ban in one Colorado city led to a dramatic drop in heart attack hospitalizations, according to a new study that is considered the best and longest-term research to show such a link, AP reported. The rate of hospitalized cases dropped 41 percent three years after the ban of workplace smoking in Pueblo, Colorado, took effect. There was no such drop in two neighboring areas, and researchers believe it's a clear sign the ban was responsible. The study suggests that secondhand smoke may be a terrible and under-recognized cause of heart attack deaths in this country, said one of its authors, Terry Pechacek of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The new study looked at heart attack hospitalizations for three years following the July 1, 2003 enactment of Pueblo's ban, and found declines as great or greater than what was seen in the other research. «This study is very dramatic,» said Dr. Michael Thun, a researcher with the American Cancer Society.
