Top Things to Know: Cardiopulmonary Impact of Electronic Cigarettes and Vaping Products
Prepared by Johanna A. Sharp, MSN, RN
- Among middle school students, current e-cigarette use increased from 0.6% in 2011 to 4.9% in 2018, an estimated 570,000 students.
- Data from the 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System show that 1.2 million adults who never smoked combustible cigarettes were current electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) users.
- Because e-cigarettes and vaping products contain more limited ingredients and the absence of combustion, the products are often touted as a safer alternative and potential tobacco-cessation tools. However, the 2019 outbreak of E-cigarette, or Vaping, product use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) in the United States led to more than 2,800 hospitalizations.
- Vaping can cause a wide array of severe, adverse health effects that include nicotine poisoning, trauma from device battery explosions, and injury to the GI, cardiovascular, and neurologic systems.
- This Statement offers a timely review of the acute and especially the long-term implications of e-cigarettes and vaping products on cardiopulmonary health. Early molecular and clinical evidence suggest various acute physiologic effects from ENDS, particularly those containing nicotine.
- The use of ENDS during pregnancy is prevalent among expectant mothers who smoke throughout pregnancy and who are using ENDS to quit combustible cigarette smoking. ENDS use can be falsely perceived as a safer alternative compared to combustible cigarette smoking and women are trying to reduce the stigma or health concerns during pregnancy.
- While more studies are needed to understand the full health risk profile of different types of ENDS devices and ENDS liquids, claims that ENDS present absolutely no health risks are false based on the limited, but growing, available evidence.
- Given that the prevalence of youth e-cigarette and vaping product use has been as high as 20% in recent years in the United States, it is critical to assess the short-term and long-term health effects of these products, as well as the development of interventional and public health efforts to reduce youth use.
- The rates of ENDS use are high among adolescents and young adults. This is particularly true of youths from under resourced populations: those with lower socioeconomic status, those who identify as LGBTQ, those from lower educational backgrounds, those from underserved communities, and those with mental health conditions.
- Despite efforts to regulate vaping and e-cigarette products, there continue to be gaps in the regulations that allow the tobacco industry to continue the sale of tobacco products that are easily accessible to children and young adults.
Citation
Rose JJ, Krishnan-Sarin S, Exil VJ, Hamburg NM, Fetterman JL, Ichinose F, Perez-Pinzon MA, Rezk-Hanna M, Williamson E; on behalf of the American Heart Association Council on Cardiopulmonary, Critical Care, Perioperative and Resuscitation; Council on Epidemiology and Prevention; Council on Cardiovascular Radiology and Intervention; Council on Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health; Council on Peripheral Vascular Disease; Stroke Council; and Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology.Cardiopulmonary impact of electronic cigarettes and vaping products: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association [published online ahead of print July 17, 2023]. Circulation. doi: 10.1161/CIR.0000000000001160