New Insights into Vaping-Related Injuries
Recent usage of e-cigarettes has increased tremendously, especially among young adults. In 2017, 11.7% of high school students reported using e-cigarettes whereas 20.8% reported use in 2018. Additionally, e-cigarettes use battery-operated heaters to break a liquid down into toxic compounds. These devices most commonly include tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD), and butane hash oil, referred to as “dabs”. Although these substances are already dangerous in isolation, heating them produces manganese and zinc that are toxic when inhaled.
The effects of using these devices are extremely deleterious, affecting many organ systems that include one’s respiratory and gastrointestinal tissues. Additionally, a strong correlation between e-cigarettes and lung disease occurrence within 90 days of use has been found. In this year alone, there were 87 cases reported for unexplained respiratory illness in Wisconsin and Illinois, and although only 53 of these cases were analyzed, unexplained respiratory illnesses were reported in at least 25 other states as well. These cases were jointly studied by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and the Illinois Department of Public Health, finding the median age of patients to be 19 years old and 83% to be male.
The effects of using these devices are extremely deleterious, affecting many organ systems that include one’s respiratory and gastrointestinal tissues. Additionally, a strong correlation between e-cigarettes and lung disease occurrence within 90 days of use has been found. In this year alone, there were 87 cases reported for unexplained respiratory illness in Wisconsin and Illinois, and although only 53 of these cases were analyzed, unexplained respiratory illnesses were reported in at least 25 other states as well. These cases were jointly studied by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and the Illinois Department of Public Health, finding the median age of patients to be 19 years old and 83% to be male.
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Common symptoms among these cases were low oxygen levels in the blood, fatigue, difficulty breathing, cough, nausea, vomiting, and fever. At the pathological level, 87% of patients had an elevated level of white blood cells in their blood, while 33% had high sodium and low potassium levels. Around 72% of the cases sought outpatient care due to their respiratory and gastrointestinal distress, and 45% received antibiotic agents for suspected respiratory tract infection prior to going to the emergency department for immediate help. Following lung biopsy, widespread inflammation and alveolar damage was discovered. 50 of the 53 patients were hospitalized, where the majority were in the intensive care unit for respiratory failure. The patients reported that they used e-cigarettes and similar devices about 90 days prior to when they started to first experience symptoms, as well as reported using e-cigarette at least once a day. It was found that most of the patients used both nicotine and THC products.
Although there seems to be a positive correlation between e-cigarette usage and respiratory disease, there is a chance that there are other potential causes for these illnesses. Furthermore, individuals might have had problems recalling their history with e-cigarette usage, which can make the three month timeline unreliable. Although it is hard to prove causation between usage of these devices and respiratory illness, the multitude of other dangers should dissuade people from using them in the first place.
Although there seems to be a positive correlation between e-cigarette usage and respiratory disease, there is a chance that there are other potential causes for these illnesses. Furthermore, individuals might have had problems recalling their history with e-cigarette usage, which can make the three month timeline unreliable. Although it is hard to prove causation between usage of these devices and respiratory illness, the multitude of other dangers should dissuade people from using them in the first place.
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