Vital Signs Volume 9, Issue 2 - Page 2

Vital Signs Vital Signs is brought to you by the physicians of the Greater Louisville Medical Society. It is a free health and wellness publication intended for educating patients on important medical health topics. VAPOR RISING Vital Signs Team David Watkins, MD Vital Signs Adviser Bruce A. Scott, MD GLMS President Robert H. Couch, MD GLMS President-Elect Lelan Woodmansee, CAE GLMS Executive Director Bert Guinn, MBA, CAE GLMS Associate Executive Director Aaron Burch GLMS Communications Specialist Kate Williams GLMS Communications Designer GLMS Mission Promote the science, art and profession of medicine; Protect the integrity of the patient-physician relationship; Advocate for the health and well-being of the community; Unite physicians regardless of practice setting to achieve these ends. Notice Vital Signs is published by the Greater Louisville Medical Society, 101 W. Chestnut St. Louisville, KY 40202 Phone [phone] Fax [phone] www.glms.org For more information, contact Aaron Burch at [phone] or [email protected] Vital Signs is underwritten by: MedicaL Society Employment Services A Greater Louisville Medical Society Company Copyright 2014 The Greater Louisville Medical Society. All rights reserved. 2 A Q&A Regarding the Rise of E-cigs with Pulmonary Specialist John Lloyd, MD I n the last few years, use of electronic cigarettes and personal vaporizers has increased dramatically throughout the United States. According to a recent article by USA Today, American sales of electronic cigarettes numbered just 50,000 in 2008 before jumping to 3.5 million in 2012. There are more than 450 different brands of e-cigarettes and more than 7,700 different flavors on the market. Business is clearly booming. However, the positive and negative aspects of using e-cigarettes are still being debated. The American Heart Association recently released a statement arguing that the new products needed to be strongly and quickly regulated to prevent another generation of teenagers and young adults from becoming addicted to nicotine. Currently, e-cigarettes can be legally sold to children under the age of 18, and the number of minors who have tried the product is growing each year with more than 7% of teens admitting to trying the product in 2012. While the product may have merits for helping long-time adult smokers ease their addiction to standard tobacco products, studies so far have been limited and largely inconclusive. Some countries have already become skeptical of the health aspects regarding e-cigarettes. In March 2014, Western Australia banned the sale of the product entirely. In February, the European Parliament passed regulations similar to those imposed on other tobacco products. The United States Food and Drug Administration is currently pushing for similar rules in the American market. John Lloyd, MD, has practiced pulmonary medicine in Louisville for forty years and thinks these regulations are the right move for a product with so much uncertainty surrounding it. Dr. Lloyd currently practices at Louisville Pulmonary Care, PLLC, with his longtime business partner Barry Stoler, MD. During his decades of medical service, he has had considerable experience with patients addicted to tobacco products. We sat down with Dr. Lloyd to ask his thoughts on e-cigarettes and the future of tobacco use. Have you enjoyed reading Vital Signs? AT&T Get healthy tweets from GLMS physicians by following @VitalSigns2Go on Twitter. FIND US ON TWITTER OR TEXT @VitalSigns2Go follow VitalSigns2Go TO 40404. VITAL SIGNS Volume 9 • Issue 2