Articles related to SMOKING/VAPING

Chest CT in this young woman with a history of smoking and chronic hypoxemia of unknown cause shows diffuse ground-glass opacities and some areas of peripheral consolidation with no basilar reticulations or honeycombing. Biopsy showed extensive alveolar filling with pigment-laden macrophages. What’s your diagnosis?

A comprehensive review on the widespread uptake of vaping, including its origins and history, a timeline of discoveries, terminology, epidemiology, its use as a “harm reducer,” clinical presentations of vaping lung injuries (including an overview of the 2019 EVALI outbreak), the pathophysiology of vaping-induced lung injury, clinical aspects including outcomes, COVID-19 considerations, future directions, guidelines, and questions for future research.

An 87-year-old white man presented to a hospital emergency surgical department with two round, grayish-brown nodules on his abdomen. He had no other complaints except feeling tired and dizzy for the last few months. He had a 120 pack-year smoking history but was not taking any medications and had not experienced a cough, chest pain, shortness of breath, or other breathing problems.

In March 2021, the US Preventive Services Task Force expanded the eligibility for lung cancer screening by setting the benchmark at a 20 pack-year smoking history for those ages 50 to 80 years who are current smokers or former smokers who have quit within the past 15 years. The new criteria will boost the number of eligible adults by 87% overall, according to a modeling analysis. It also could reduce lung cancer deaths by 13% versus 10% previously.

According to a press release from April 2021, “the FDA is working toward issuing proposed product standards within the next year to ban menthol as a characterizing flavor in cigarettes and ban all characterizing flavors (including menthol) in cigars.” Acting Commissioner Janet Woodcock, MD, said the agency had now “accumulated sufficient evidence establishing the addictiveness and harm from menthol,” which provides a “trajectory” toward ending tobacco-related disease and death.