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Fourteen teens and young adults have been hospitalized in Wisconsin and Illinois for respiratory problems potentially linked to vaping, health authorities said Friday.
In Wisconsin, a serious lung disease sent 11 people to the hospital, according to the state's Department of Health Services. This is three times more than the eight cases reported by the state at the end of July.
And in Illinois, three young people were hospitalized for having severe breathing problems after being vaped, the Public Health Department said Friday. "The names and types of vaping products, as well as where they were obtained, are still under investigation," the department said.
"Some even need help to breathe"
Thomas Haupt, an epidemiologist of respiratory diseases at the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, said Friday that the cases in his condition involved young people, "normally healthy, and that they had serious respiratory illnesses, and in some cases case, they had to go to intensive care and were placed on ventilators. "
The lung disease seemed to have been caused by an infection, "but each test came back completely negative," Haupt told CNN. As for the links between the cases, "the only thing that comes up at this stage is the vaping, but we do not know what they have vapoted, where they had their vaping liquid, all this must be determined at this stage".
Chuck Warzecha, a deputy administrator of the Wisconsin Health Department, said: "All were hospitalized for shortness of breath, fatigue and chest pain. Some even need badistance to breathe. While patients "generally improve", it is unclear what effects they may experience in the long run, he said.
The majority of Wisconsin cases have occurred in the southeastern part of the state, said Haupt. In Illinois, the state's three hospitalized patients came from the northeastern part of the state, which borders Wisconsin. It is not yet known whether cases in both states are linked to a common source, such as a vaporizer or an e-liquid.
Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, told CNN that her team had "spoken to people from Wisconsin", collected data and conducted tests. "We have a lot of unanswered questions right now," she said.
As in Wisconsin, Illinois cases included coughing, shortness of breath, fatigue, and sometimes chest pain that worsened over time, according to Ezike. The cases also occurred in people "without known lung problems or previously diagnosed lung problems," she said.
"Potentially toxic substances" in the vapors, said the Committee
There were questions about vaping safety even before recent hospitalizations. The American Lung Association, for example, is saying "very troubled by the evolution of evidence about the impact of electronic cigarettes on the lungs".
The organization highlights research showing that the key ingredients of the vape can damage cells or contain "dangerous chemicals" that can "cause lung diseases, as well as cardiovascular (heart) diseases."
An expert committee of national academies of science, engineering and medicine reported last year that there was "conclusive evidence that in addition to Nicotine, most electronic cigarette products contain and emit many potentially toxic substances. "
Scientists do not know how these substances can contribute to lung disease, if at all. But the committee said that there was "moderate evidence of an increase in coughing and wheezing in teens who use e-cigarettes" and linked to "an increase in exacerbations of smoking." # 39; asthma. "
"Who knows how many more cases we will get"
Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association, said that "unless the ministry conceals information, what we know today does not justify discouraging adult smokers." Use vaping products as an alternative to cigarettes ".
It is "absolutely shameful that health services generally accuse vapers when there is evidence that THC cartridges bought on the street are probably the cause of these hospitalizations," he said.
According to his brother, he cited local reports that a hospitalized Wisconsin patient would have purchased THC oil on the street before his breathing problems began to be felt.
However, health officials have yet to identify a common cause for all incidents, and Haupt, the Wisconsin epidemiologist, said, "We have not yet indicated that THC is a problem."
THC, the key psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, "is part of our questionnaire that we are examining to determine if THC actually exists and how often it is among these cases."
However, gathering information has been difficult because "we deal with minors, so they are not always the most honest when dealing with these issues," said Haupt.
He added that the state was in contact with US centers for disease control and prevention and that "the FDA had also called." But it's the first time the state sees a group of lung diseases badociated with vaping, Haupt said, and "who knows how many cases we're going to have."
By Arman Azad
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