Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued alerts regarding cases of pulmonary illnesses that may be linked to "vaping" (in 15 states with 149 possible cases). These cases are still under investigation but all cases reported vaping weeks/months prior to hospitalization.
Most cases involve young adults who have been using THC-containing products
Common complaints included
Gradual onset of shortness of breath, cough, and chest pain
GI symptoms: nausea, vomiting and diarrhea
Fever, fatigue
Imaging studies:
Chest x-ray can show bilateral opacity
CT lung demonstrates ground-glass opacities with sub-pleural sparing.
Clinical course
Some cases required mechanical intubation
Corticosteroid treatment appears to improve clinical course
Infectious evaluation was negative in almost all cases.
No clear causative etiology has been identified
No death has been reported
What to do:
Inquire about vaping history when treating patients with suspected cases.
Providers should contact their local health department, poison center or CDC (VapingAssocIllness@cdc.gov) to report possible case of vaping associated pulmonary injury
