Daily vaping increases heart attack risk

Despite e-cigarettes being recommended as a safer alternative to tobacco smoking, researchers found data linking both e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking with a higher risk of myocardial infarction compared with not smoking.

Man smoking e-cigarette vape

Daily use of both tobacco cigarettes and e-cigarettes increases the risk of heart attack, a study has shown.

The research, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine (online, 22 August 2018), used data from a national survey of US households from 2014 and 2016 totalling 69,046 people, including 2,259 current e-cigarette users and 11,701 current smokers[1]
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The results showed that both daily e-cigarette use and daily cigarette smoking were independently associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction versus not smoking (odds ratio [OR] 1.79 and 2.72, respectively). Former users of e-cigarettes had no increased risk of myocardial infarction (OR 0.608) compared with never users, while the risk remained elevated in former tobacco smokers (OR 1.70).

E-cigarettes have been touted as a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes, but research has linked them to adverse biological effects, such as endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and inflammation. The researchers say their study is the first one to examine the relationship between e-cigarette use and heart attack risk.

“From these findings, recreational use of e-cigarettes or use of e-cigarettes for smoking cessation should not be recommended,” the researchers said.

References

[1] Alzahrani T, Pena I, Temesgen N et al. Association between electronic cigarette use and myocardial infarction. Am J Prev Med 2018;55:455–461. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2018.05.004

Last updated
Citation
Clinical Pharmacist, CP, November 2018, Vol 10, No 11;10(11):DOI:10.1211/PJ.2018.20205660

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