1299 cases of vaping related injury reported in 49 US states

The alarming rate at which vaping has taken root in teenagers across the country is visible in the 1299 cases of vaping related lung injury reported from 49 states along with US Virgin Islands and District of Columbia as per CDC figures. The only state which has remained untouched by this healthcare issue is Alaska. This new figure reveals that cases have increased drastically when compared to last month, where 1080 lung injuries cases were reported that were related to vaping. As per data about sex and age of the victims among 1043 patients around 80 percent are below 35 years while 15 percent are below 18 years and 21 percent are between 18-20 years old. The average age of patients is 24 years and they are in the age group of 13 to 75 years.

According to CDC figures around 70 percent of patients are male and there have been 26 vaping related deaths in about 21 states. While there were 3 deaths in California followed by 2 each from Oregon, Kansas and Georgia there was one case each from Missouri, Utah, Texas, Virginia, Indiana, Nebraska, Delaware, Florida, Mississippi, New York, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, New Jersey, Michigan, Alabama, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Illinois. CDC says that they are investigating more deaths and the figures could rise as patients are between 17 – 75 years old.

Several government agencies like CDC, FDA, health departments at state level along with clinical and public health partners are trying to find the reason behind the spurt of cases and death. Though CDC reported that all patients affected by this lung disease have been vaping electronic cigarettes and have used products containing THC or tetrahydrocannabinol, no one has been able to identify the specific chemical which is causing the lung injuries. FDA warned consumers last week to stop vaping THC products until the main cause of illness and death is identified.