Level of e-cigarette power contributes to potentially hazardous effects

The higher the power of an e-cigarette, the higher the concentrations of potentially hazardous substances the device produces, including acetaldehyde, acrolein, and formaldehyde.

Those are among the findings presented at an international conference of the American Thoracic Society by lead study author Dr. Daniel Sullivan, an internal medicine resident at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. During his previous training at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, Dr. Sullivan and his associates used a variety of methods including liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to study components and nicotine formulations typical of e-cigarette users.

Under some test conditions, formaldehyde levels were comparable to those seen in traditional tobacco cigarettes, he said in a video interview.