Youth use of e-cigarettes: Does dependence vary by device type?

INTRODUCTION: Youth nicotine dependence may vary by e-cigarette device used. METHODS: E-cigarette device type ("JUUL," "similar pod/JUUL like device (i.e., pod mod)," or "other type of e-cigarette" (i.e., tank, mod)), nicotine dependence (Hooked on Nicotine Checklist; HONC), frequency of e-cigarette use (i.e., weekly, daily, monthly), and covariates were examined via a convenience sample of youth who use e-cigarettes in the United States via an online Qualtrics panel survey from April 2019 to May 2019. RESULTS: Youth aged 13-17 (Mean age = 15.9 years, SD = 1.0 year; n = 185) were mostly 72.4% female. Primary device used by category was endorsed as follows: JUUL n = 87, pod mod n = 42, and other type of e-cigarette n = 56. Participants endorsed an average of 4.5 / 10 HONC symptoms (SD = 3.6). Compared to other e-cigarettes, youth who used JUUL and pod mod devices endorsed more dependence symptoms, even when adjusting for current smoking status (JUUL IRR = 1.96, 95% CI 1.30-2.97; pod mod device IRR = 1.76, 95% CI 1.08-2.87). In total, HONC symptoms significantly differed by device for 8/10 symptoms, with JUUL and pod mod users reporting higher frequency of items compared to other e-cigarette devices. CONCLUSIONS: Features of nicotine dependence experienced by youth (i.e., feeling a stronger urge to vape) differed by primary device used, with those using JUUL and pod-mods reporting a greater level of dependence. Regulation of features of e-cigarette devices that may increase nicotine delivery and subsequent development of dependence among youth warrant urgent consideration.

Harm Perceptions of Tobacco/Nicotine Products and Child Exposure: Differences between Non-Users, Cigarette-Exclusive, and Electronic Cigarette-Exclusive Users.

OBJECTIVE: This study examined caregiver perception of harm and child secondhand exposure to nicotine in a sample of e-cigarette-exclusive, cigarette-exclusive, and non-tobacco/nicotine users (non-users). METHODS: Cigarette-exclusive (n = 19), e-cigarette-exclusive (n = 12), and non-users (n = 20) and their children (N = 51, Mage = 10.47) completed self-report questionnaires about perceptions of harm, child secondhand exposure, and provided urine to assess child nicotine exposure (cotinine). ANOVAs examined differences between caregiver use status on tobacco harm perceptions and child cotinine levels. Independent samples t-test compared differences in caregiver-reported child secondhand exposure in the home and car. RESULTS: All 3 caregiver groups rated cigarettes as highly harmful (P = .14), but e-cigarette users rated all 3 types of e-cigarette products (Cartridge-based: P < .001; Tank: P < .001; Box Mod: P < .001) as less harmful than cigarette users and non-users. Caregivers from the e-cigarette user group reported greater child secondhand exposure than caregivers using cigarettes (past 7-day in-home exposure (P = .03); past 7-day exposure in-home + in-car exposure (P = .02); in-home exposure by caregivers and other people exposure (P = .02)). Children from the cigarette user group had significantly higher levels of cotinine (M = 16.6, SD = 21.7) compared to children from the Non-User group (M = .43, SD = .95; P = .001), but no significant difference when compared to children from the E-Cigarette User group (M = 6.5, SD = 13.5). DISCUSSION: In this sample, caregivers who used e-cigarettes perceived them as less harmful, reported using them more frequently at home and in the car, even when their children were present, compared to cigarette users. As a result, children appear to be exposed to nicotine at levels similar to children living with cigarette users. Future caregiver prevention and intervention efforts should target education around the potential harms of secondhand e-cigarette aerosol to children.

Adolescent Susceptibility to E-Cigarettes: An Update From the 2018 National Youth Tobacco Survey.

PURPOSE: Examine correlates of e-cigarette susceptibility among adolescents. DESIGN: Secondary data analyses using the 2018 National Youth Tobacco Survey, excluding participants under 12 and over 17. SETTING: United States middle and high schools. SUBJECTS: Never e-cigarette users (n = 12,439) ages 12-17. MEASURES: Relationships between e-cigarette susceptibility and age, sex, race/ethnicity, ever tobacco use, perceived ease of purchasing tobacco products, perceived harm, relative addictiveness, household use of e-cigarettes/tobacco were examined. ANALYSIS: Odds of susceptibility were modeled with weighted multivariable logistic regressions. RESULTS: Thirty-five percent (unweighted n = 4,436) of adolescents were susceptible to e-cigarettes. Adolescents who were female (aOR = 1.2), Hispanic (aOR = 1.3), perceived e-cigarettes as anything less than "a lot of harm" (aOR = 2.2-4.9) and "easy" to purchase (aOR = 1.4), had ever used combustible tobacco (aOR = 2.9), or reported household use of e-cigarettes (aOR = 1.5) were susceptible. Non-Hispanic black respondents (vs. non-Hispanic white; aOR = 0.72) had significantly lower odds of susceptibility to e-cigarettes. CONCLUSION: In the 2018 NYTS adolescent sample, perceptions of harm and ease of tobacco product purchase appear to be significantly related to higher odds of e-cigarette susceptibility, in addition to other demographic factors. Longitudinal data, particularly cohort data following adolescents from susceptible to actual or no use, are needed to assess predictors of e-cigarette use initiation.

Evaluation of Respiratory Symptoms Among Youth e-Cigarette Users.

Importance: Use of e-cigarettes (ECs) among youths has increased in recent years. e-Cigarette aerosol contains chemical constituents, such as diacetyl or benzaldehyde, which are known to affect the respiratory system. Objective: To examine the association between EC use and self-reported wheezing in a cohort of US adolescents. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study used data from waves 3 and 4 (October 19, 2015, to January 3, 2018) of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study, a longitudinal, nationally representative cohort survey. Adolescent respondents aged 12 to 17 years who did not have asthma were included. Exposures: e-Cigarette use during the previous year. Main Outcomes and Measures: Self-reported wheezing in the past 12 months (yes or no) and EC use (no use in past year or never use, use in past year, use in past 30 days, and use in past 7 days). Survey-weighted logistic regression models adjusted for demographic characteristics and other risk factors. Results: Among 7049 adolescents without asthma from waves 3 and 4 of the PATH study, 49.9% were female and 54.4% were non-Hispanic White. In unadjusted models, the odds of wheezing in the past 12 months were higher for youths who had used ECs in the past year compared with those who had not (odds ratio, 1.74; 95% CI, 1.22-2.48; P = .003). In the adjusted model, after controlling for the variables of race/ethnicity, household rules about the use of tobacco, contact with a smoker in the previous 7 days, and current use of combustible tobacco products, the association of EC use with wheezing was not significant (adjusted odds ratio for EC use in the past year, 1.37 [95% CI, 0.91-2.05]; in the past 30 days, 1.35 [95% CI, 0.63-2.88]; in the past 7 days, 0.74 [95% CI, 0.28-1.97]; P = .33). Conclusions and Relevance: In this cohort study, use of ECs alone was not associated with increased odds of experiencing wheezing episodes. Future studies incorporating the use of objective data appear to be needed to more accurately understand the potential respiratory harms associated with vaping among adolescents.