Case of Popcorn Lung in Canada Due to E-Cigarettes? Not so Fast

It is being widely reported in the media that there was recently a case of " popcorn lung " in Canada that was due to the use of e-cigarettes. These reports are exaggerated and inaccurate representations of a medical journalarticle published in theCanadian Medical Association Journal.The article reports the case of a 17-year-old patient who presented with severe respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation. A chest CT scan revealed a " bud-in-tree " pattern which is consistent with a diagnosis of bronchiolitis. Because the study authors had heard that some e-liquids contain a flavoring called diacetyl, which has linked to popcorn lung disease in popcorn factory workers who were exposed to very high doses of the pure chemical, they speculated that this could be a case of popcorn lung attributable to the use of e-cigarettes.The Rest of the StoryIt is very unlikely that this case represents popcorn lung attributable to electronic cigarette use, and there is certainly no documentation or hard evidence to draw such a conclusion. Importantly, the authors are merely speculating when they suggest that this could be popcorn lung and that it could be attributable to e-cigarettes. It also could be a different type of bronchiolitis, and it could be attributable to theuse of THC vape carts, which the patient admitted usingvery heavily prior to becoming sick. These THC vape carts were apparently not purchased from a licensed cannabis dispensary.Importantly, the authors themselves a...
Source: The Rest of the Story: Tobacco News Analysis and Commentary - Category: Addiction Source Type: blogs