Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 07.01.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_46793" align="alignleft" width="165"]Dr. Hongying Dai, PhD Associate Professor at the College of Public Health University of Nebraska Medical Center. Dr. Dai[/caption] Dr. Hongying Dai, PhD Associate Professor at the College of Public Health University of Nebraska Medical Center. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (FSPTCA) banned cigarettes with characterizing flavors (e.g., candy, fruit, clove) except menthol. However, there are no restrictions on the marketing and sales of flavored non-cigarette tobacco products. This has led to a proliferation of flavored tobacco products in the marketplace. Flavoring has become one of the leading reasons for current tobacco use among youth. It is reported that 81% of e-cigarette users, 79% of hookah users, 74% of cigar users, 69% of smokeless tobacco users, and 67% of snus users attributed the availability of appealing flavors for their tobacco use in 2013–2014 among teenagers aged 12 to 17 years. In November 2018, the FDA proposed new restrictions on flavored tobacco products.
Author Interviews, NEJM, Pediatrics, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research, University of Michigan / 30.12.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_46749" align="alignleft" width="159"]Richard Miech Ph.D Professor Principal Investigator, Monitoring the Future Institute for Social Research University of Michigan Dr. Miech[/caption] Richard Miech Ph.D Professor Principal Investigator, Monitoring the Future Institute for Social Research University of Michigan MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Every year Monitoring the Future conducts a survey to examine trends in adolescent substance use.  We draw a random sample of schools from a list of all schools in the United States and conduct our survey in ~400 schools.  Our survey is representative of U.S. 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students.  In other words, our results are what you would find if you surveyed every single 8th, 10th, and 12th graders in the United States, within the bounds of a small sampling error of a few percentage points. An increase in vaping is the big news for 2018.  In 10th and 12th grade the increase in nicotine vaping was the largest we've ever seen for any substance in the past 43 years.  As a result of this increase in nicotine vaping, overall use of nicotine increased as well, which suggests that vaping is drawing youth into nicotine use.  We also saw a significant increase in marijuana vaping.
Alcohol, Author Interviews, Smoking / 28.12.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_46740" align="alignleft" width="200"]Dr. Sarah Dermody, PhD Assistant Professor School of Psychological Science Oregon State University Corvallis Oregon Dr. Dermody[/caption] Dr. Sarah Dermody, PhD Assistant Professor School of Psychological Science Oregon State University Corvallis Oregon  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Drinking alcohol is a risk factor for sustained smoking. In a sample of daily cigarette smokers receiving treatment for alcohol use disorder, we examined if reductions in drinking corresponded with reductions in nicotine metabolism as indexed by the nicotine metabolite ratio. The nicotine metabolite ratio is important because it is associated with smoking level and lapses. We found that for men, alcohol use and the nicotine metabolite ratio reduced significantly; however, for women, neither drinking nor nicotine metabolite ratio changed.
Author Interviews, Endocrinology, OBGYNE, Smoking / 24.10.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Nis Brix M.D., PhD Student Department of Public Health Department of Epidemiology Aarhus University Hospital Nis Brix M.D., PhD Student Department of Public Health Department of Epidemiology Aarhus University Hospital  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Several studies have indicated a secular trend towards earlier puberty. This is a potential concern as early puberty has been linked to an increased risk of a number of diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and certain types of cancer. For this reason, our research team are interested in identifying potential modifiable causes of early puberty. Smoking during pregnancy may be such a modifiable cause of early puberty in the children. Former studies have already linked smoking during pregnancy to earlier age at the daughters’ first menstrual period, a relatively late marker of pubertal development, but other markers of puberty are less studied, especially in the sons. We studied 15,819 sons and daughters. The mothers gave detailed information on smoking during their pregnancies, and the children gave information on a number of pubertal milestones half-yearly from the age of 11 years. The milestones for the sons were age at voice break, first ejaculation of semen, pubic hair and testicular growth, armpit hair growth and onset of acne. For the daughters the milestones were age at their first menstrual period, pubic hair growth, breast development, armpit hair growth and onset of acne. Our results suggested that the more cigarettes the mother smoked during her pregnancy the earlier her children, both sons and daughters, went through puberty. If the mother smoked more than ten cigarettes a day during pregnancy, the children appeared to go through puberty, on average, three to six months earlier than the children of non-smoking mothers.
Author Interviews, Bristol Myers Squibb, Rheumatology, Smoking / 24.10.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_45370" align="alignleft" width="90"]Pr Gilles Boire, M.D., M. ScService de rhumatologie Département de médecine Faculté de médecine et des sciences de la santé Université de Sherbrooke Prof. Boire[/caption] Pr Gilles Boire, M.D., M. ScService de rhumatologie Département de médecine Faculté de médecine et des sciences de la santé Université de Sherbrooke MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients are heterogeneous at initial presentation, in response to treatments and according to their outcomes. No clinical features and very few biomarkers, except autoantibodies such as anti-Cyclic Citrullinated Peptides/Proteins (CCP), identify patients with divergent prognostic trajectories. To help improve early prognostic classification, we initiated 20 years ago the single center longitudinal observational Early Undifferentiated PolyArthritis (EUPA) study of consecutive patients presenting with recent-onset inflammatory polyarthritis, 90% of which fulfill classification criteria for RA at baseline. Our registry includes 739 very early RA patients (median symptom duration 3.6 months), rapidly treated to joint remission (i.e. 0/66 swollen joint) and followed over 5 years. Each patient visit is linked to biosamples and to sequential radiographs scored according to the modified Sharp/van der Heijde method. As we had the clinical impression that clinical features of recruited patients were evolving, we compared patients from 3 periods (1998-2004; 2005-2010; 2011-2017). 
Author Interviews, Genetic Research, PLoS, Smoking, Tobacco Research / 17.10.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: "Photo booth: The Smoking Man" by simpleinsomnia is licensed under CC BY 2.0Pradeep G. Bhide, Ph.D. Professor | Jim and Betty Ann Rodgers Eminent Scholar Chair of Developmental Neuroscience Director, Center for Brain Repair Department of Biomedical Sciences Florida State University College of Medicine Tallahassee, FL MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Until now, much attention had been focused on the adverse effects of cigarette smoking by pregnant women on their children’s cognitive development. Some reports suggested that cigarette smoking during pregnancy can produce harmful effects in multiple generations of descendants (transgenerational effects). Not much had been known about the effects of paternal smoking, although more men smoke cigarettes than women. Our study shows that paternal nicotine exposure can be deleterious to the offspring in multiple generations. That is, cognitive function may be compromised in children and grandchildren of a nicotine-exposed male. Of course, our study was done in mice and not men.  However, since studies done in mice on maternal nicotine exposure produced results consistent with studies done in women and children, we believe that he findings from our present study likely can be extrapolated to humans. 
Author Interviews, Johns Hopkins, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 11.10.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: "Electronic Cigarette/E-Cigs/E-Cigarettes" by Chris F is licensed under CC BY 2.0Mohammadhassan (Hassan) Mirbolouk, MD American Heart Association Tobacco Regulation Center (A-TRAC) Johns Hopkins Hospital Baltimore, MD 21224. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: E-cigarettes were introduced first in US market as a less harmful method of nicotine delivery which potentially would help smokers to have a less harmful option. However, overtime e-cigarette found its niche of consumers in the younger/tobacco naïve population. Our study is amongst the first studies that describes those who use e-cigarette without any history of combustible-cigarette smoking. 
Author Interviews, CDC, JAMA, Pediatrics, Smoking / 04.10.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: "Electronic Cigarette/E-Cigs/E-Cigarettes" by Chris F is licensed under CC BY 2.0Brian King, PhD Lead author and Deputy Director for Research Translation Office on Smoking and Health. CDC MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Since first entering the U.S. marketplace in 2007, e-cigarettes have been a rapidly evolving product class. Typically, national surveys provide annual, self-reported estimates of e-cigarette use among adults and youth. However, given the dynamic nature of the e-cigarettes landscape, data collected at a sub-annual level can be useful for identifying rapid changes and patterns. For example, retail sales data, which is available at more frequent intervals, such as weekly, can complement annual surveys and help keep a pulse on emerging trends. This study assessed e-cigarette retail sales data in the United States from 2013 through 2017.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 06.09.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_44259" align="alignleft" width="144"]Dorothy K. Hatsukami, Ph.D. Forster Family Professor in Cancer Prevention Professor of Psychiatry Associate, Director Masonic Cancer Center University of Minnesota Dr. Hatsukami[/caption] Dorothy K. Hatsukami, Ph.D. Forster Family Professor in Cancer Prevention Professor of Psychiatry Associate, Director Masonic Cancer Center University of Minnesota  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is considering a rule that would reduce nicotine in all cigarettes and possibly other burned tobacco products sold in the U.S. to minimally addictive levels.   Reducing nicotine in cigarettes does not make the cigarette safer, but because nicotine is the addictive chemical in tobacco, nicotine reduction would reduce the progression towards tobacco dependence and make it easier for smokers to quit smoking.  We recently published a study in JAMA that adds to the accumulating evidence to support reducing nicotine in cigarettes and addresses if a gradual reduction or a targeted immediate reduction in nicotine in cigarettes is the best approach. In a large clinical trial involving 1,250 smokers across 10 academic institutions, immediate reduction of nicotine was compared to a gradual nicotine reduction approach. These two groups were also compared to smokers who continued to smoke usual nicotine content cigarettes. Key findings showed that immediate nicotine reduction is likely to result in more rapid positive public health effects.  That is, smokers in the immediate reduction group experienced significantly less exposure to toxic cigarette smoke chemicals and reported smoking fewer cigarettes per day, less dependence on cigarettes and greater number of days that they were smoke-free compared to the other two groups. On the other hand, smokers in the immediate nicotine reduction group experienced more severe but transient withdrawal symptoms and greater drop-outs. 
Author Interviews, Pediatrics, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research, University Texas / 10.07.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “hookah” by Ksenia M is licensed under CC BY 2.0Cheryl L. Perry, Ph.D. Professor of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences The Rockwell Distinguished Chair in Society and Health University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health, Austin, Texas MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: There have been large changes in the social environment over the past 10 years that have affected tobacco use among youth and young adults. These include social media, e-cigarettes, and new regulations aimed at preventing use among youth. Historically, nearly all onset of tobacco use, particularly cigarettes, occurred prior to high school graduation by age 18. Some recent national cross-sectional data suggested that onset might be occurring among young adults. We decided to explore, with national and Texas data, whether onset of tobacco use was more likely to occur among young adults. We did this by analyzing data from 3 studies over one year.
Author Interviews, Education, Pediatrics, Smoking, Technology, Tobacco Research / 29.06.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_42881" align="alignleft" width="112"]Jon-Patrick Allem, Ph.D., M.A. Research Scientist Keck School of Medicine of USC Dr. Allem[/caption] Jon-Patrick Allem, Ph.D., M.A. Research Scientist Keck School of Medicine of USC MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Would you briefly explain what is meant by JUUL?  Response: The JUUL vaporizer is the latest advancement in electronic cigarette technology, delivering nicotine to the user from a device about the size and shape of a thumb drive. JUUL has taken the electronic cigarette market by storm experiencing a year-over-year growth of about 700 percent. In our most recent study, we wanted to document and describe the public’s initial experiences with JUUL. We collected posts to Twitter containing the term “Juul” from April 1, 2017 to December 14, 2017. We analyzed over 80,000 posts representing tweets from 52,098 unique users during this period and used text classifiers (automated processes that find specified words and phrases) to identify topics in posts.
Addiction, Author Interviews, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 15.06.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: e-cigarette CDC imageDr Lynne Dawkins, PhD Associate Professor London South Bank University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Many people think that it’s the nicotine that’s harmful so they opt for using a low strength in their e-liquid. We know from tobacco smoking that when people switch to using a lower nicotine yield cigarette, they compensate in order to maintain a steady blood nicotine level by taking longer, harder drags and this can increase exposure to toxins in the smoke. We also know from some of our other work with vapers (e-cigarette users) that they tend to reduce the nicotine strength of their e-liquid over time. We therefore wanted to explore whether vapers also engage in this compensatory puffing and whether this has any effect on exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.
Author Interviews, BMJ, GSK, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 14.06.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “Day 1 of nicotine patch, just stuffed my face with lunch at work and do NOT even want a cigarette” by David Bruce Jr. is licensed under CC BY 2.0Paul Aveyard Professor of Behavioural Medicine Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences University of Oxford Radcliffe Primary Care Building Radcliffe Observatory Quarter Oxford MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Tobacco addiction occurs because of repeated pairings of the act and sensation of smoking with binding of nicotine in the midbrain leading to release of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens. These repeated pairings create associative learning and, when brain nicotine concentrations fall, this produces a compulsion to keep using tobacco. In theory, blocking the actions of nicotine released while smoking ought to reverse this learning. One way to do this is to use a nicotine patch which provides a steady state high concentration of nicotine that desensitises the nicotinic receptors in the midbrain, making them unresponsive to nicotine from a smoked cigarette. This is the theory behind nicotine preloading. The clinical trial evidence that preloading works is equivocal, with some trials suggesting a very large therapeutic effect and others no benefit at all. In the light of both the promise and the uncertainty, we aimed to complete the largest trial to date of nicotine preloading to examine its effectiveness, safety, and tolerability.
AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Heart Disease, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 14.06.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “fathers day” by James Simkins is licensed under CC BY 2.0Jessica L. Fetterman, PhD Assistant Professor of Medicine Boston University School of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: In our study, we studied endothelial cells, the cells that line the inside of the blood vessels. We collected endothelial cells from smokers both who use menthol and non-menthol cigarettes are impaired compared to non-smokers and we could make the non-smoker cells look like the endothelial cells of smokers by treating with menthol or eugenol (provides a clove spice-flavoring). To test a wider variety of commonly used flavoring additives, we treated cultured (outside of the body in a dish) endothelial cells with some of the most commonly used flavoring additives in tobacco products and at different concentrations/doses. We then evaluated the effects of flavoring additives by looking at measures of cell death, oxidative stress, inflammation, and the ability of the cells to produce nitric oxide, a cardio-protective chemical made by endothelial cells that is lost when the cells become damaged. We found that the flavoring additives used in tobacco products like e-cigarettes are toxic to the cells that line the blood vessels (endothelial cells). Our works suggests that the flavoring additives used in tobacco products may be harmful to the cardiovascular system.
Author Interviews, JAMA / 30.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “Stop smoking!” by Emil_95 is licensed under CC BY 2.0Shahrokh F. Shariat, M.D. Professor and Chairman Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center Medical University Vienna Adjunct Professor of Urology and Medical Oncology Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, NY, USA Adjunct Professor of Urology UT Southwestern, Dallas, TX MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: We know that tobacco smoking produces more than 70 carcinogens and is associated with worse prognosis in many solid cancers. Although the association between cigarette smoking and prostate cancer death has been demonstrated, such association regarding other end points is still unclear. We evaluated different disease endpoints, such as recurrence, occurrence of metastasis and cancer-specific mortality at an earlier stage of disease. We found that smokers who underwent primary treatment for localized prostate cancer - such as radical prostatectomy and radiotherapy - are at increased risk of recurrence, metastasis and cancer-specific mortality. 
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Gender Differences, Lung Cancer, NEJM, Smoking, Tobacco Research / 24.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “Woman smoking” by Pedro Ribeiro Simões is licensed under CC BY 2.0Ahmedin Jemal, DVM, PHD Scientific Vice President, Surveillance & Health Services Rsch American Cancer Society, Inc. Atlanta, GA 30303 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Historically, lung cancer rates have been higher in men than women at all ages because of the substantially higher cigarette smoking prevalence in men. However, cigarette smoking prevalences over the past few decades have become similar between young men and women. Consistent with this pattern, we previously reported the convergence of lung cancer rates between young men and young women. In this paper, we examined the lung cancer incidence rates in young women versus young men in the contemporary cohorts. We found that the historically higher lung cancer incidence rates in young men than in young women have reversed in whites and Hispanics born since the mid-1960s. However, this emerging incidence patterns were not fully explained by sex difference in smoking prevalence as cigarette smoking prevalences among whites and Hispanics were not higher in young women than young men.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Smoking, Tobacco Research / 16.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “E-Cigarette/Electronic Cigarette/E-Cigs/E-Liquid/Vaping” by Vaping360 is licensed under CC BY 2.0Wei Bao, MD, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Although the health effects of e-cigarettes remains unclear, e-cigarettes have been marketed as an approach for smoking cessation. Previous studies have reported an increase in e-cigarette use in US people since 2010. The current study showed that from 2014 to 2016, there was an increase in ever use of e-cigarettes but decline in current use of e-cigarettes. 
AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Smoking / 01.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “Stop smoking!” by Emil_95 is licensed under CC BY 2.0Janina Markidan MS III, MD Student University of Maryland School of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: In a study of 1,145 young men, we found a strong dose-response relationship between the number of cigarettes smoked daily and the risk of ischemic stroke. We categorized the participants as never smokers, former smokers and current smokers. Current smokers were divided into groups based on the number of cigarettes smoked daily, 1 to 10, 11 to 20, 21 to 39, or 40 or more. We found that men who smoked were 88 percent more likely to have a stroke than men who never smoked. Among current smokers, men who smoked fewer than 11 cigarettes daily were 46 percent more likely to have a stroke than those who never smoked. But the heavier smokers, smoking at least two packs a day, were nearly 5 times (466%) more likely to have a stroke than those who never smoked. 
Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research, UCSF / 07.01.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “hookah” by Ksenia M is licensed under CC BY 2.0Benjamin Chaffee, DDS MPH PhD UCSF School of Dentistry San Francisco, CA 94118 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Non-cigarette tobacco products, which include electronic cigarettes, hookah (tobacco waterpipe), smokeless tobacco, and non-cigarette combustibles, like cigars, are increasingly popular among young people. Considerable debate surrounds whether use of these non-cigarette products encourages youth to begin smoking conventional cigarettes. Several previous studies have shown associations between non-cigarette tobacco use and youth smoking. These studies had largely looked at only one type of tobacco product at a time. This study included more than 10,000 adolescents from all over the United States, surveyed at two time points one year apart. Therefore, this study featured enough participants and detailed information about tobacco behaviors to consider all types of tobacco products in a comprehensive way. We found that each type of non-cigarette tobacco product (i.e., e-cigarettes, hookah, combustibles, or smokeless tobacco) added to smoking risk. Among youth who had never smoked a cigarette at the start of the survey, use of any of the non-cigarette products approximately doubled the odds of cigarette smoking within a year, after adjusting for multiple smoking-related risk factors. Each product independently increased risk. The adolescents most susceptible to future smoking to were those who had tried two or more types of non-cigarette tobacco.
Abuse and Neglect, Author Interviews, Cancer Research, ENT, JAMA, Smoking, Social Issues / 10.11.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_38154" align="alignleft" width="150"]Nosayaba Osazuwa-Peters, BDS, MPH, CHES Instructor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Saint Louis University School of Medicine Member, Saint Louis University Cancer Center St Louis, Missouri Nosayaba Osazuwa-Peters[/caption] Nosayaba Osazuwa-Peters, BDS, MPH, CHES Instructor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Saint Louis University School of Medicine Member, Saint Louis University Cancer Center St Louis, Missouri  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Several studies have shown that there is an adverse effect of smoking on head and neck cancer survival; however, there are studies that show no effect between smoking and head and neck cancer. We wanted to investigate this problem using a single institution’s cancer dataset. Additionally, we wanted to understand the role of marital status in the smoking behavior of head and neck cancer patients, and to understand if smoking played any role in head and neck cancer survival. Our study confirmed that head and neck cancer patients who were smokers at the time of diagnosis had lower survival rates than nonsmokers. We also found that married head and neck cancer patients were less likely to be smokers and more likely to survive longer than those unmarried.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Smoking, Tobacco Research / 07.11.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “Stop smoking!” by Emil_95 is licensed under CC BY 2.0Dr. Man Ping Wang, PhD School of Nursing University of Hong Kong Hong Kong MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Smoking cessation (SC) services can effectively increase the chance of abstinence, but few smokers proactively seek help from these services worldwide. Smoking cessation guidelines recommend referring smokers to SC services, but such referrals were usually conducted in a passive way (e.g. providing contacts of these services and asking smokers to use them). Actively referring smokers may increase use of smoking cessation services and abstinence rates. Previous studies were mostly conducted in clinical settings. We investigated the efficacy of using trained volunteers to actively refer smokers recruited in the community to smoking cessation services in this cluster randomized control trial. We found that smokers who received a brief cessation advice and active referral had significantly higher abstinence rate and smoking cessation service use rate at 6-month follow-up, compared with smokers who received a minimal advice and a self-help booklet.
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Smoking / 22.08.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_36518" align="alignleft" width="142"]Dr Quinn Pack Dr. Quinn Pack[/caption] Dr.  Quinn R Pack MD Assistant Professor of Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine Baystate Northern Region Cardiology Baystate Health Springfield, MA   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and is very common among patients with heart disease.  Several smoking cessation medications are available and recommended in clinical guidelines to help smokers quite. However, it was unknown how often these were used and what factors make the use of pharmacotherapy more common. The main finding is that, across of broad range of hospitals, smoking cessation medications are infrequently used and the hospital where the patient was treated was the most important factor in determining if the patient was treated.
Author Interviews, JNCI, Lung Cancer, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 22.05.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Peter G. Shields, M.D. Deputy Director, Comprehensive Cancer Center James Cancer Hospital Professor, College of Medicine Julius F. Stone Chair in Cancer Research The Ohio State University Columbus, OH MedicalResearch.com: What do we know about the health effects of cigarette filters?  Response:  The issue is that the design of the filters makes a cigarette even more dangerous, which can be regulated by the FDA. The issue is not about having a filter, but how they are made. And now we are changing the dialogue to the design of virtually all cigarettes. The holes on the filter are likely one reason the cigarettes of today are more dangerous.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, NYU/NYMC, Smoking / 17.05.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_34281" align="alignleft" width="120"]Moon-shong Tang, Ph</strong>D Professor of Environmental Medicine, Pathology and Medicine New York University School of Medicine Tuxedo Park, New York 10987 Dr. Moon-shong Tang[/caption] Moon-shong Tang, PhD Professor of Environmental Medicine, Pathology and Medicine New York University Langone School of Medicine Tuxedo Park, New York 10987 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: E-cigarettes (E-cigs) are designed to deliver the stimulant nicotine through aerosols, commonly referred as vapors. Nicotine is dissolved in organic solvents such as glycerin and propylene glycol. The nicotine is then aerosolized by controlled electric heating. E-cigs do not use tobacco leaves and E-cig smoke does not involve the burning process. Hence, E-cig smoke (ECS) contains only nicotine and the gas phase of the solvent. Because ECS contains neither carcinogens nor allergens or odors from the tobacco burning process, E-cigs have been promoted as an invention that can deliver a TS ‘high’ without TS negative effects. The population of E-cig users is rapidly rising, particularly in young adults. It has been estimated that 16% of high school students are E-cig smokers. Therefore, the health effects of E-cig smoke, particularly its carcinogenicity, deserve careful scrutiny.
Author Interviews, Dermatology, Smoking / 11.04.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_33825" align="alignleft" width="180"]Jacob P. Thyssen MD, PhD, DmSci Department of Dermatology and Allergy Herlev and Gentofte Hospital University of Copenhagen Hellerup, Denmark Dr. Thyssen[/caption] Jacob P. Thyssen MD, PhD, DmSci Department of Dermatology and Allergy Herlev and Gentofte Hospital University of Copenhagen Hellerup, Denmark MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Atopic dermatitis has been associated with various comorbidities. With the emergence of biologics for the treatment of atopic dermatitis, the hypothesis has been raised that atopic dermatitis is a systemic immune disease affecting more than just the skin.
Author Interviews, NYU/NYMC, Smoking, Surgical Research, Tobacco Research / 17.03.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Amy Wasterlain, MD Fourth-year orthopaedic surgery resident NYU Langone Medical Center who led the study with Dr. Richard Iorio  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response:  We looked at smoking habits and outcomes for 539 smokers undergoing primary total hip or knee arthroplasty, 73 of whom participated in a pre-operative smoking cessation program. Patients who participated in program were 4.3 times more likely to quit than smokers who tried to quit on their own. Program participants also reduced their tobacco intake dramatically (10.6 fewer cigarettes/day) compared to smokers who didn’t participate (2.3 fewer cigarettes/day), even if they weren’t able to quit completely. Patients who completed the program before undergoing total knee arthroplasty had about 24% fewer adverse events (readmission, venous thromboembolism, stroke, urinary tract infection, pneumonia, and surgical site infection) than smokers who didn’t participate in the program.
Author Interviews, Dermatology, Pediatrics, Smoking, Tobacco Research / 15.03.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_32929" align="alignleft" width="191"]Dr. Saskia Trump PhD Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ Department of Environmental Immunology Leipzig, Germany Dr. Saskia Trump[/caption] Dr. Saskia Trump PhD Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ Department of Environmental Immunology Leipzig, Germany MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Environmental chemicals have long been discussed to contribute to the exacerbation or even the development of allergic diseases. In our study we were particularly interested in the effect of tobacco smoke exposure, which is the main source for indoor benzene exposure, on regulatory T cell (Treg) function and its relation to the development of childhood atopic dermatitis (AD). Tregs play a critical in controlling T effector cell activity by avoiding overexpression. A deficiency in this T cell subset increases the risk for allergic inflammation. We have previously described that exposure to tobacco smoke during pregnancy can decrease the number of regulatory T cells (Treg) in the cord blood and predispose the child to the development of AD (1). In this subsequent study we were interested in the underlying mechanism involved. Benzene itself is not considered to be toxic, however its metabolization leads to the formation of highly reactive molecules. In humans for example the metabolite 1,4-benzochinone (1,4-BQ) can be found in the blood as a consequence of benzene exposure. To further assess the effect of benzene on Treg and the development of AD we combined in vitro studies, evaluating the impact of 1,4-BQ on human expanded Treg, with data from our prospective mother-child cohort LINA. The LINA study, recruited in Leipzig, Germany, is a longitudinal evaluation of mother-child pairs with respect to lifestyle and environmental factors that might contribute to disease development in the child. Based on this deeply phenotyped cohort we were able to translate our in vitro findings to the in vivo scenario.
Author Interviews, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 24.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_32358" align="alignleft" width="200"]Jennifer M. Polinski PhD Senior Director, Enterprise Evaluation and Population Health Analytics, CVS Health CVS Caremark Corporation Harvard School of Public Health Dr. Jennifer Polinski[/caption] Jennifer M. Polinski PhD Senior Director, Enterprise Evaluation and Population Health Analytics, CVS Health CVS Caremark Corporation Harvard School of Public Health MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Nearly three years ago, we removed tobacco products from all CVS Pharmacy locations to help our customers on their path to better health. While there is a growing body of evidence that suggests that restricting access to tobacco helps reduce its use, we wanted to understand if our decision to remove tobacco had a nationwide impact on our customers’ purchasing behavior and presumed smoking habits. In fact, our research findings, published in the American Journal of Public Health, show that CVS Health’s decision to remove tobacco from all CVS Pharmacy stores reduced the number of cigarette purchases across all other retail settings, including gas stations, convenience stores, and other outlets. In addition, customers who exclusively purchased cigarettes at CVS Pharmacy were 38 percent more likely to stop buying cigarettes, and those who purchased three or more packs of cigarettes per month at a CVS Pharmacy were more than twice as likely to stop buying cigarettes altogether.
Addiction, Alcohol, Author Interviews, Cannabis, Education, Pediatrics, Smoking / 23.02.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. James Williams UCL Medical School UCL, London, UK MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Despite a downward trend over the last decade in the usage of particular substances amongst adolescents in the UK, smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol and smoking cannabis remain prevalent behaviours in this demographic. These risky health behaviours present a large problem in terms of public health due to the immediate and long-term health problems they cause, as well as negative non-health outcomes such as poor educational attainment and reduced employment. The role of academic ability in determining patterns of substance use is not clear and no study has evaluated academic ability at age 11 in relation to the onset and persistence of all three substances from early to late adolescence and into young adulthood. Our study sought to determine the association between academic ability and the onset and persistence of substance use in adolescence in a representative sample of English school pupils. This would answer for the first time whether ability was associated with ‘experimentation’ in early adolescence or if the association persists into late adolescence.