TUESDAY, Nov. 12, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Transitioning from cigarettes to electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) is associated with resolution of respiratory symptoms, but the rate of resolution is reduced among those who switch to dual use or maintain or increase smoking intensity, according to a study published online Nov. 12 in Nicotine & Tobacco Research.

Jonathan B. Berlowitz, M.D., from the Boston University School of Public Health, and colleagues examined whether transitioning from cigarettes to e-cigarettes is associated with resolution of respiratory symptoms using data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study waves 1 to 5. Observations with cigarette−e-cigarette exposure intervals determined from PATH waves 1 to 2, 2 to 3, and 3 to 4 were included for participants who reported exclusively smoking at baseline and reported a baseline cough or wheeze.

The researchers found that compared with persistent smoking, transitioning from cigarettes to e-cigarettes was associated with increased rates of wheeze resolution (incidence rate ratio, 1.33; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.01 to 1.75), but not with cough resolution (incidence rate ratio, 1.18; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.93 to 1.50) among 5,210 observations. There was no association seen for cigarette to dual-use transitions with improvements in symptom resolution. Compared with persistent smoking, whose who switched to dual use and maintained or increased their smoking intensity had 15 percent reduced rates of respiratory symptom resolution.

“Whereas cigarette users who switch completely to e-cigarettes may experience respiratory symptom improvements, those unable to reduce their smoking intensity may face increased risk of respiratory morbidity,” the authors write. “This difference is concerning as U.S. cigarette users are far more likely to transition to dual use than to exclusive e-cigarette use.”

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