Study launches to test effects of vaping on cardio-pulmonary health

People who participate will receive individualized test results and up to $675 for completing the three-year study. To participate, visit MyVapeCheck.com.

Although studies have examined the physical effects of vaping, virtually all have examined very short-term or cross-sectional effects. These studies are valuable but do not provide the same degree of evidence as a study that follows people who vape for multiple years.

The study, known as Vape Check, is a collaboration between the UW Health Preventive Cardiology Program and the UW Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention (UW-CTRI).

“This study will produce the most informative evidence to date on how long-term vaping affects cardiovascular and pulmonary health as well as disease risk,” said Dr. James Stein, professor of medicine and director of both the UW Health Preventive Cardiology Program and the UW Atherosclerosis Imaging Research Program. Stein will co-lead the project with the associate director of UW-CTRI, Tim Baker, who holds a doctorate in clinical psychology.

The study team will recruit 400 participants aged 21 and older who have vaped regularly for a year or more and do not currently smoke, as well as 200 age- and gender-matched control participants who do not vape or smoke.

Participants will undergo comprehensive biomarker assessments at UW–Madison periodically over a span of three years.

Researchers will test vital signs, obtain non-fasting blood samples for inflammation and cardiometabolic health, and use ultrasound machines to check participants’ arteries for injury or other changes.

Stein and a team of pulmonology and cardiovascular collaborators will monitor participants’ heart rate variability and use CT scans (a diagnostic imaging procedure that uses a combination of X-rays and computer technology) to evaluate participants’ lung function and evidence of harm.

They will also obtain real-time measures of nicotine product use, nicotine dependence, and other substances to determine if and how biomarker changes are related to vaping patterns and frequency of use over time.

Importantly, the researchers are not aiming to identify harm caused by vaping; they are focused on understanding how vaping affects the human body.

“If vaping is significantly harmful, we can tell the public so that they can make more informed choices about vaping,” Baker said. “Such results would also provide valuable guidance to clinicians and policymakers. If vaping is found not to be seriously harmful, this may encourage individuals to quit smoking and switch to vaping (ideally to exclusive use, not dual use). Such findings might also encourage the development of clinical harm reduction treatments involving vaping. Of course, while this single study will contribute relevant information, it cannot provide definitive evidence as to vaping’s health effects.”

Vape Check is a follow-up to the original Cardiac and Lung E-cigarette Smoking Study (CLUES). Approximately 130 participants from the first study have expressed interest in participating in Vape Check.

Information on the health effects of vaping is of great public health relevance. According to a 2021 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 13.2 million people aged 12 or older (or 4.7%) said they vaped nicotine in the past month. The highest prevalence was amongst young adults aged 18 to 25 (14.1% or 4.7 million people). Ten percent of U.S. middle and high school students (2.8 million youth) reported vaping.