New evidence more strongly links vaping injuries to vitamin E acetate

(ALEX HOGAN/STAT)

New CDC evidence released late last week strengthens the tie between the recent string of vaping-related lung injuries and the additive vitamin E acetate. Scientists evaluated 51 lung fluid samples from those with these injuries — dubbed EVALI — and found vitamin E acetate in 48 of them. None of the fluid samples from 99 healthy patients contained the additive. For more on vitamin E acetate, including why it might be making people sick, check out a new explainer video from STAT’s Megan Thielking and Alex Hogan.

Other federal agencies are investigating possible sources of these injuries. The FDA and DEA seized 44 websites advertising the sale of illicit vaping cartridges containing THC, the primary psychoactive component in marijuana. None of the products sold on the websites have yet been linked to lung injuries.