E-cigarette use and change in plans to quit cigarette smoking among adult smokers in the United States: Longitudinal findings from the PATH Study 2014–2019

• Published in: Addictive behaviors 2022-01, Vol.124, p.107124-107124, Article 107124
• Main Authors: Kasza, Karin A., Edwards, Kathryn C., Anesetti-Rothermel, Andrew, Creamer, MeLisa R., Cummings, K. Michael, Niaura, Raymond S., Sharma, Akshika, Pitts, Stephanie R., Head, Sara K., Everard, Colm D., Hatsukami, Dorothy K., Hyland, Andrew
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Cigarette Smoking; Daily smokers; E-cigarette use; Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems; Humans; Intention to quit; Longitudinal; Population; Smokers; Smoking Cessation; Tobacco Products; United States - epidemiology; Vaping
• ISSN: 0306-4603; 1873-6327; 1873-6327
• DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.107124

•We evaluated adult daily cigarette smokers initially not planning to ever quit.•Subsequent daily e-cigarette use was related to changing plans to quit smoking.•E-cigarette research focused only on smokers motivated to quit limits full evaluation. Much of the population-based e-cigarette use and cigarette cessation literature is restricted to smokers who have expressed intention to quit smoking, though experimental studies suggest e-cigarette use might motivate some smokers to change their quit intentions. We used U.S. nationally representative data to evaluate whether e-cigarette use by smokers initially not planning to ever quit is associated with change in plans to quit. Longitudinal Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study data collected between 2014 and 2019 were analyzed. Main analyses were conducted among adult daily cigarette smokers not currently using e-cigarettes with no plans to ever quit smoking (n = 2366 observations from n = 1532 individuals). Generalized estimating equations were used to evaluate the association between change in e-cigarette use and change in plans to quit smoking within the next six months, over three assessment pairs. Daily cigarette smokers with no plans to quit had a higher rate of change to plan to quit if at follow-up they used e-cigarettes daily (41.4%, 95% CI: 27.1–57.3%) versus not at all (12.4%, 95% CI: 10.6–14.5%; aOR = 5.7, 95% CI: 2.9–11.2). Rate of change to plan to quit did not statistically differ between those who at follow-up used e-cigarettes some days versus not at all. Among adult daily cigarette smokers initially not planning to ever quit, subsequent daily e-cigarette use is associated with subsequent plans to quit smoking. Population-level research on e-cigarette use that is focused on smokers already motivated to quit may limit a complete evaluation of the smoker population.