US: Most fatal ‘EVALI’ vape cases linked exclusively to THC

Most fatal ‘EVALI’ cases can be attributed to vaporised THC oil, a CDC investigation has revealed

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its partners have investigated the outbreak of “E-cigarette or vaping product use associated lung injury” that is believed to have claimed 34 lives so far.

The CDC investigated 1,604 cases across 24 US states in an attempt to determine the cause.

They found:

• 84% of the deceased had used vaping products containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the three months leading to their deaths.
• 63% of EVALI victims had been exclusively vaping THC-containing products.
• 16% reported exclusive use of nicotine-containing products.

The CDC determined that the median age of EVALI survivors was 23 years and the median age of the deceased was 45 years.

They recommend that people stay away from all vape products containing THC until more is known about EVALI.

The FDA, state and local health departments and other public health and clinical stakeholders have also been involved in the investigation.

What else is known about EVALI?

Some scientists believe that EVALI could be a new type of lipoid pneumonia.

This could be linked to the Vitamin E acetate found in black-market and home-made THC oils.

However, acting FDA commissioner Ned Sharpless said:

“It may be that there is more than one cause of this outbreak.”

Sharpless explained that the National Center for Health Statistics is currently developing a coding system for doctors, insurers and health departments.

This code will be entered into the medical records of EVALI patients to enable a more streamlined tracking system.

This way health officials will be able to easily access all EVALI records and track case commonalities.

CBD vape products have also been implicated in a number of recent health scares.

We recommend CBD vapers buy PG/VG e-liquids from a reputable source and stay clear of oil-based products.

Photo by Zachary Tan on Unsplash