Study: E-Cigarettes Do Not Increase the Risk of Contracting COVID-19

Using e-cigarettes does not make you more likely to contract COVID-19. A group of British scientists has been working to refute anti-vaping speculation, much of it originating in the United States. Now, to further clarify the issue, a new study published in the Journal of Primary Care & Community Health, titled “E-cigarette Use Is Not Associated with COVID-19 Diagnosis,” has added more evidence. It was conducted by five researchers from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, USA, and coordinated by Ivana T. Croghan. The aim of the study was to test the hypothesis that e-cigarette use is associated with an increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

The sample used included nearly 70,000 patients aged 12 and older who were smokers or e-cigarette users and sought care at Mayo Clinic between September 15, 2019 and November 30, 2020 (69,264 in total). The observation period therefore lasted more than one year. In fact, beginning in mid-September, doctors had already started recording patients' current or past use of e-cigarettes as part of routine clinical practice. The average age of the sample was 51.5 years, and more than half (62.1%) were women. Of the participants, 11.1% were smokers or e-cigarette users, and 5.1% tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.

The results are reassuring. Compared with the general population, the study indicated that “patients who used only e-cigarettes were less likely to be diagnosed with COVID-19.” In other words, the authors again pointed out that e-cigarette use “does not appear to increase susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection.” The study also confirmed a pattern observed since March 2020: smokers had a lower risk of contracting the disease, while dual users fell somewhere in between. The researchers said that, in addition to dispelling lingering doubts about e-cigarettes, these data also suggest the hypothesis that “any beneficial effect of conventional smoking on susceptibility is not mediated by nicotine.” Mayo Clinic will conduct further research to assess whether e-cigarette use may mitigate the consequences of COVID-19.