Contact Us | Sign In | Apply for NAQC Membership
NAQC Newsroom: Research

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-containing E-cigarette, or Vaping, Product Use Behaviors among Adults Aft

Saturday, June 19, 2021  
Posted by: Natalia Gromov
Trivers KF, Watson CV, Neff LJ, Jones CM, Hacker K.
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-containing E-cigarette, or Vaping, Product Use Behaviors among Adults After the Onset of the 2019 Outbreak of E-cigarette, or Vaping, Product Use-associated Lung Injury (EVALI).
Addict Behav. 2021 May 14;121:106990. doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.106990. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34087764.

Introduction. During the E-cigarette, or Vaping, Product Use-Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) outbreak, patient data on tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-containing e-cigarette, or vaping, product (EVP) use was collected, but data on non-affected adult product use after the onset of the EVALI outbreak is limited. This study describes adult THC-EVP use after EVALI began.

Methods. THC-EVP use data came from an 18-state web-based panel survey of adult THC- and nicotine-containing EVP users conducted February 2020. Unweighted descriptive statistics were calculated; logistic regression assessed correlates of use.

Results. Among 3,980 THC-EVP users, 23.5% used THC-EVPs daily. Common brands of THC-EVPs used were Dank Vapes (47.7%) and Golden Gorilla (38.7%). Reported substances used included THC oils (69.6%), marijuana herb (63.6%) and THC concentrate (46.4%). Access sources included: recreational dispensaries (41.1%), friend/family member (38.6%) and illicit dealers (15.1%). Respondents aged 45-64 years had lower odds for daily use compared with those aged 25-34 years (aOR = 0.73; 95% CI = 0.60, 0.90). Compared with White respondents, Asian respondents had lower odds (aOR = 0.55; 95% CI = 0.36, 0.84) and Black respondents higher odds (aOR = 1.48; 95% CI = 1.17, 1.86) of daily use. Respondents odds of daily use and accessing THC-EVPs through commercial sources were higher among states with legalized nonmedical adult marijuana use compared to states without.

Conclusions. Almost half of respondents reported daily or weekly THC-EVP use, and accessed products through both informal and formal sources, even after EVALI began. Given the potential for future EVALI-like conditions to occur, it is important to monitor the use of THC-EVPs and ensure effective education activities about associated risk.

« Back to Index