Study finds vaping association with risk of heart failure

More than 64 million people globally are affected by heart failure — a cardiovascular condition where the heart muscle is not able to pump enough blood for the body. Heart failure can occur if the heart muscle is damaged by infection, illegal drug use, high blood pressure, a congenital heart defect, heart attack, irregular heart rhythm, certain diseases including diabetes and coronary artery disease, and cigarette smoking.

For this study, Yakubu Bene-Alhasan, a resident physician at MedStar Health in Baltimore and lead author of this study, along with his team reviewed data from electronic health records and surveys of more than 175,000 adults from the All of Us study, run by the National Institutes of Health. Upon analysis, researchers found that people who used e-cigarettes at any point in their lives were 19% more likely to develop heart failure than those who had never used e-cigarettes. They also found e-cigarette use had the biggest impact on a certain type of heart failure.

The researchers reported that the increased heart failure risk linked to e-cigarette use was statistically significant for heart failure with preserved ejection fraction- also known as diastolic heart failure – which occurs when the heart can pump normally, but the muscle is too stiff to allow it to properly fill with blood.

“A recent meta-analysis in NEJM found that vaping increased (the) risk of cardiovascular disease among others. Animal studies have also found changes in the heart leading to reduced contractility and relaxation after exposure to e-cigarettes. These are the same changes seen in heart failure,” said Bene-Alhasan.

“Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction is relatively less understood but is gaining more recognition. The traditional medicines used to treat heart failure have less mortality benefits in this type of heart failure. As such, its management should include strategies to prevent it from developing in the first place. Knowing that e-cigarettes could potentially lead to this type of heart failure is important (in) drawing up preventive interventions,” he concluded.

Reference: bene-alhasan, y, Mensah, S, Almaadawy, O. et al. ELECTRONIC NICOTINE PRODUCT USE IS ASSOCIATED WITH INCIDENT HEART FAILURE - THE ALL OF US RESEARCH PROGRAM. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2024 Apr, 83 (13_Supplement) 695; https://doi.org/10.1016/S0735-1097(24)02685-8