2015 to 2021 Saw Increase in Electronic Vaping Product Use in Teens

THURSDAY, May 16, 2024 (HealthDay News) — From 2015 to 2021, there were significant increases in the use of electronic vapor products (EVPs) among adolescents, according to a study published in the May issue of the Ochsner Journal.

Charles H. Hennekens, M.D., from the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, and colleagues used data from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey for grades 9 through 12 from 2015 to 2021 to examine temporal trends in EVP use. Data were included for 57,006 adolescents.

The researchers found that from 2015 to 2019, there was an increase of more than 3.5-fold in daily use of EVPs, from 2.0 to 7.2 percent. In 2021, the percentage decreased to 5.0 percent. In 2015, EVP use was significantly higher in boys than girls (2.8 versus 1.1 percent), but by 2021, use was higher among girls (5.6 versus 4.5 percent). Compared with 2015, in 2021, EVP use was higher among White youth than Black, Asian, and Hispanic/Latino youth (6.5 percent versus 3.1, 1.2, and 3.4 percent, respectively); between 2015 and 2021, the highest increases of about threefold were seen for White and Black adolescents. At all periods, the highest percentages of EVP use were seen for adolescents in grade 12.

“The sustained high levels of EVP use, despite the observed decrease during the U.S. COVID-19 epidemic, suggest an urgent need for health care providers to integrate routine screening for vaping and nicotine dependence into adolescent health assessments,” the authors write.

Two authors disclosed ties to industry, including one who is a co-inventor on patents for inflammatory biomarkers and cardiovascular disease.

Abstract/Full Text