Assault, PTSD, family substance use, and depression as risk factors for cigarette use in youth: Findings from the national survey of adolescents

A national household probability sample of 4,023 adolescents aged 12 to 17 years was surveyed by telephone via structured clinical interview to determ ine the impact of familial substance use, sexual and physical assault, witn essed violence, depression posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) on risk of smoking. Results indicated that familial substance use increased risk of sm oking only for boys and sexual assault or depression increased risk of smok ing only for girls. Age, Caucasian ethnicity and experiencing physical assa ult or witnessing violence elevated risk of current cigarette use for both genders. By, contrast, PTSD per se was not associated with increased risk o f smoking, after the effects of other variables were controlled.