Smoking cigarettes was associated with an increased risk for chronic kidney disease in African-Americans participating in a large cardiovascular cohort study.

Heavy smokers (a pack per day or more) in the Jackson Heart Study, a large prospective study of African-Americans, had almost double the risk for rapid renal function (RRF) declines, compared with participants who did not smoke.

And kidney disease risk rose in a dose-dependent manner with increased smoking in the cohort, after adjustment for possible confounders including age, sex, and BMI.