A first of its kind study published in 2017 Health impact of E-cigarettes: a prospective 3.5-year study of regular daily users who have never smoked explores the health effects of prolonged exposure to e-cigarette use in e-cigarette users who have never smoked before.
The comprehensive 3.5-year study was conducted by a distinguished team of researchers at Centro per la Prevenzione e Cura del Tabagismo of the University of Catania.
The study measured the following health outcomes; respiratory system, heart, lung function, blood pressure, heart rate and the bodyweight of a group of adult e-cigarette users (average age 29.7 years) who have never smoked tobacco cigarettes. And compared them to a control group who have never vaped or smoked tobacco cigarettes.
Throughout the study both groups were subject to the following thorough tests and measurements:
Blood Pressure (BP), Heart Rate (HR), and Bodyweight
Spirometry Procedure
Respiratory Symptoms
FeNO Measurements
eCO Measurements
Lung HRCT
Statistical analysis
This is the first study that has explored the health effects of prolonged exposure to e-cigarette use in e-cigarette users who have never smoked before.
The study findings clearly show that no significant changes could be detected over the 3.5 year period between the e-cigarette users and the control group in any of the health outcomes investigated.
Furthermore, no pathological findings could be identified on High-Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT) scans of the lungs and no respiratory symptoms were consistently reported in the e-cigarette user group.
Although there is very little known about the long term effects of vaping. This study, the longest of its kind to date did not demonstrate any health concerns associated with long-term use of e-cigarettes in relatively young users who did not also smoke tobacco.
It is also significant to note that the group of adult e-cigarette users who have never smoked tobacco cigarettes had to be daily e-cigarette users of equal to or greater than 3 months prior to the study.
