Electronic Cigarettes as a Harm Reduction Strategy in Individuals With Substance Use Disorder

NYU Langone Health

Status and phase

Completed

Phase 2

Conditions

Cigarette Smoking

Addiction

E Cig Use

Treatments

Other: E cigarettes

Other: Nicotine Replacement Therapy

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT04063267

18-00840

Details and patient eligibility

About

Patients in addiction treatment have exceptionally higher rate of cigarette smoking and very low quit rates compared to the general population. The purpose of this study is to examine the feasibility of using e-cigarettes as a method for harm reduction and the effects of providing e-cigarettes (or placebo e-cigarettes) on smoking outcomes among patients in addiction treatment.

Full description

Electronic nicotine delivery devices often referred to as e-cigarettes, are battery-powered devices that deliver vaporized nicotine when inhaled. Corresponding with the growth in media attention, marketing and promotion, awareness and use of e-cigarettes has increased dramatically. A large proportion of those using e-cigarettes use them to reduce the number of cigarettes they are smoking or to help them quit. Use of an e-cigarette by smokers unwilling or unable to stop smoking completely might be a good approach to reducing cigarette consumption as the e-cigarette imitates some behavioral aspects of cigarette smoking and contains nicotine. Moreover, the few existing studies on the effect of e-cigarettes on tobacco withdrawal and craving suggest promising potential to assist smokers in coping with smoking urges and decreasing cigarette use.

Enrollment

48 patients

Sex

All

Ages

18 to 65 years old

Volunteers

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

smokes at least 10 cigarettes per day
meet DSM-V AUD and/or OUD within the past year, interested in reducing CPDs
able to provide consent
use a cell phone, are willing/able to receive and respond to daily text messages regarding their cigarette use and e-cigarette use on their cell phone
provide one additional contact, and are willing to use an e-cigarette for 3 weeks.

Exclusion criteria

pregnant and/or breast feeding (self-reported)
currently using smoking cessation medications (including other forms of NRT, buproprion, or varenicline)
enrolled in a smoking cessation program or another cessation tria
have used an e-cigarette in the past 14 days
have used any other tobacco products (pipe, cigar, cigarillos, snuff, chewing tobacco, rolling tobacco, or hookah/shisha) in the past 30 days
report having a history of asthma, other airways diseases, or heart disease.