Electronic Cigarettes and Alternative Methods of Vaping
Humberto Choi, Yu Lin, Elliot Race, Maeve G. MacMurdo
Abstract
Vaping, the inhalation of heated aerosols, received widespread attention during the outbreak of electronic-cigarette (e-cigarette) or vaping-associated acute lung injury cases in 2019. E-cigarette use is now widely recognized as a potential cause of acute lung injury. Vaping is often perceived by physicians as referring exclusively to the use of e-cigarette devices. However, inhalation of nicotine or tetrahydrocannabinol-containing aerosol through alternate methods such as "dabbing" and "dripping" are increasingly common. However, the health impact of these alternate methods remains poorly understood. The use of alternate methods and devices may go unrecognized because of lack of clinician familiarity with them. In this review, we discuss e-cigarettes devices, electronic-liquid components, the expanded spectrum of methods used to consume aerosolized substances, and the potential for lung injury.