Federal officials have shared the first bit of good news in months on the epidemic of lung disease stemming from vaping, noting that new cases appear to be on the decline.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Friday, Dec. 20, that this month saw a dip in the number of emergency department visits for the disease. The death toll from electronic cigarette or vaping product use-associated lung injury (EVALI), however, has now climbed to 54, with 2,506 cases reported in every U.S. state.
Health officials Friday also confirmed strong linkages between the additive vitamin E acetate and such lung disease. They’ve additionally found that patients requiring hospitalization for EVALI are more likely to have a history of chronic conditions, including respiratory disease. As such, the CDC has updated its treatment recommendations, urging providers to wait until EVALI patients are clinically stable before discharging them, and assessing them again within 48 hours, rather than two weeks.
“It is important that physicians and clinical providers work with EVALI patients to ensure follow-up care within two days,” CDC Director Robert Redfield, MD, said in a statement. “A follow-up visit with a primary care physician is especially important for EVALI patients with underlying chronic conditions. Ensuring this timely medical attention and monitoring can save lives.”
All told, the CDC released four new reports on Friday, building on the growing body of research on EVALI. That included a New England Journal of Medicine analysis confirming a decline in ED visits, another exploring the linkage between EVALI and vitamin E acetate, a study on vaping-related rehospitalizations, and a fourth that updates clinical guidance.
EVALI has been of keen interest to radiologists in recent months, as clinicians navigate diagnosing this new indication. The Radiological Society of North America convened an expert panel of radiologists earlier this month at its annual meeting to discuss the disease.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.