After just three weeks of vaping, a teenager in Pennsylvania developed acute respiratory distress syndrome, a serious medical condition which is sometimes referred to as “wet lung” for short.
The 18-year-old woman, whose identity was not disclosed for privacy concerns, worked at a restaurant as a hostess at the time of the incident.
After just three weeks of using an electronic cigarette, she found herself being rushed to a hospital emergency room where doctors placed her on antibiotics to treat a range of symptoms, which included chest paint, trouble breathing, and coughing. But after being placed on antibiotics, her condition continued to deteriorate. At which point, the young woman developed a lung inflammation known as hypersensitivity pneumonitis.
She was then placed on a ventilator and had tubes inserted into her in order to drain fluid that had pooled up in her lungs. It was at this point that the young hostess was diagnosed with acute respiratory distress syndrome, or “wet lung.”
The entire ordeal was documented by physicians in a detailed case study published in the journal Pediatrics.
Dr. Len Horovitz, a pulmonary specialist at New York City’s Lenox Hill Hospital, told CBS News that chemicals like glycerin or propylene glycol, both of which are commonly found in e-liquids used with electronic cigarettes and other vaping devices, “may have played a role” in the young woman’s medical condition. Horovitz was not involved with the woman’s care.
“Chemicals such as glycerin or propylene glycol have been questioned for some time as to their safety, and may have played a role here.”
Wet lung is an inflammation of the lungs which is caused by an allergic reaction to either dust or chemicals. In this case, it appears as if it may have been the chemical cocktail found within the e-juice that she was using that caused the allergic reaction, ultimately landing her in an emergency room where she found herself hooked up to a breathing machine with tubes inserted into her.
As for how often this condition could occur in vapers, Dr. Casey Sommerfeld, the study’s lead author and the young woman’s pediatrician, was quoted by WCVB as having said that it’s “difficult to speculate on how frequently this could happen; however, there are a few case reports involving adults that developed respiratory distress following electronic cigarette use.”
Sommerfeld added that so long as e-cig use increases, “we will be seeing more case reports and side effects.”
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