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An e-cigarette user in Illinois is the first to die from a mysterious lung illness linked to vaping.
The individual was hospitalized for a mysterious lung illness that has been linked to vaping and is one of ~200 similar cases across 22 states.
The affected individuals have had symptoms including cough, shortness of breath and fatigue, officials said. Some also experienced vomiting and diarrhea. Symptoms worsened over a period of days or weeks before they were hospitalized.
Illinois officials said the death was in an adult who died this month but did not provide further details about the person or what device or product had been used.
While some of the cases appear similar, officials said they don't know whether the illnesses are associated with the e-cigarette devices themselves, or with specific ingredients or contaminants inhaled through them.
Health officials have said patients have described vaping a variety of substances, including nicotine, marijuana-based products and do-it-yourself "home brews."
Although cases appear similar, no common factor has yet been determined or even if these are all the same disease.
Mitch Zeller, who heads the Center for Tobacco Products at the Food and Drug Administration, said the agency is working to identify the products used, where they were purchased, how they were used and whether other compounds were added.
"That information needs to be strung together for every single one of these cases to see if any patterns emerge," he said.
For perspective, according to CDC statistics more than 1300 people die from cigarette-related deaths per day in the United States, and more than 7 million per year world wide.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Reziac on Monday August 26 2019, @02:33AM (3 children)
Another article:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/one-mans-near-death-experience-with-vaping-related-lung-failure/2019/08/24/ca8ce42c-c5b4-11e9-9986-1fb3e4397be4_story.html?tid=pm_national_pop [washingtonpost.com]
"One exam, though, picked up something unusual — evidence of abnormal immune cells in his lungs — generally associated with a rare, potentially deadly pneumonia seen in older people who accidentally inhale droplets from oil-based laxatives like mineral oil."
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 2) by sjames on Monday August 26 2019, @05:59AM (2 children)
That is a reasonable place to look.
One absolute rule for formulating e-juice is NEVER use an oil. Just don't. It's too bad not everyone knows that. The problem was self-limiting when vape businesses were almost exclusively Mom'N'Pop operations made up of people who mixed their own and decided to go pro. If they were dangerously bad at it, Darwin filtered them out for you. I don't remember any word in the community of the darwin filter ever actually acting. I guess when your own ass is on the line you tend to be more careful, at least if you have yourself together enough that you can set up production and get a website.
I wouldn't be so sure with either big corporate producers or "bathtub" producers (mostly people adding THC in states where it's illegal). The former are unlikely to make anything that will kill you outright, but they are certainly going to willingly sacrifice quality to squeeze out a few more pennies in profit. Who knows what the latter might do. I wouldn't generally expect genuine malice there, but incompetence has a way of looking like malice.
Personally, I still make my own because I want to know what's in it.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Monday August 26 2019, @07:16AM (1 child)
Yeah, I was thinking specifically CBD oil, what with it being all the rage lately. (That adding it to your vape might be completely nonsensical and useless... well, that never stopped anyone.) But it could be any oil, including accidental micro-contamination from tag ends of the packaging process, or even from the user's greasy fingers.
Contamination with something like machine oil is more likely to result from too much maintenance, rather than not enough. (So not just some bastard being cheap.)
As to the amateurs, as you say it would be helpful if every vaper knew ANY OIL IS DEATH DON'T DO IT. Maybe for once a warning label would be appropriate.
And might be we're just seeing the natural shake-out for relatively new tech, where we haven't yet seen all the health hazards and all the ways it can go wrong, including in the manufacturing chain. Still, I think this falls under Be Careful, not Everybody Panic. Far as I can see, it still beats smoking.
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 2) by sjames on Monday August 26 2019, @06:10PM