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There’s no denying that vaping has become a huge trend over the past few years – especially with young people.
It feels safer than smoking cigarettes and vape liquid comes in a whole plethora of different flavors. Therefore, it’s easy to see why it’d be popular with teens.
Unfortunately, it may not be as safe as once presumed.
According to Wisconsin doctors, the state has confirmed no less than 12 hospitalizations for lung damage due to vaping.
Wisconsin’s Department of Health Services explains that most cases involved individuals under the age of 40. However, an additional 13 cases are still being investigated, and some do include older patients, including several in their 50s.
It seems some also involve “dabbing,” which is a term for vaping marijuana extracts, oils, or concentrates. Though it is unclear at this time what products all of the patients used.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health Services said they included “nicotine, THC, synthetic cannabinoids, or a combination of these.”
Officials say that symptoms have included shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue, coughing, and weight loss. They also note that the “severity of the disease has varied among patients.”
Some of the teenage patients reportedly struggled with basic tasks like tying their shoelaces or washing their hair.
And though treatment has helped these patients, officials are unsure of the potential long-term effects.
Several cases where young people have been hospitalized after vaping are being investigated in Illinois as well.
Officials have explained that trying to discern the exact culprit has been challenging. Not all folks are forthcoming with information on where they obtained certain products or what, exactly, they were.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control are both assisting with the investigations.
“It’s mind-boggling,” Dr. Diana Zuckerman told CBS News.
Zuckerman, who is the president of the National Center for Health Research, said she was not aware of any traditional smokers winding up in the hospital at such a young age.
The new statistics from Wisconsin follow a recent news story involving a Wisconsin man who wound up in a coma.
The 26-year-old had reportedly purchased a cheap vape cartridge from a street dealer. He was later hospitalized due to severe lung damage and had to be placed in a medically induced coma. Though he remains unidentified, he is said to have incurred severe damage to several of his organs.
The cartridge the man had been using allegedly contained THC.
A teenager in Florida was also hospitalized due to a collapsed lung, said to be caused by Jull pods.
