Key result
E-cigarettes and NRT yield similar improvements in flow-mediated dilation at six months during smoking cessation.
Why the study?
E-cigarettes are popular for smoking cessation, but there is little evidence regarding their medium- and longer-term cardiovascular health effects.
Do e-cigarettes with or without nicotine improve cardiovascular surrogate markers compared to nicotine replacement therapy in adult smokers attempting to quit?
Population
248 adult smokers willing to attempt to stop smoking with support
Comparison
Nicotine e-cigarettes vs nicotine-free e-cigarettes vs NRT
Design
Single-center pragmatic three-arm randomized controlled trial
Follow-up
6 months
Authors
Loading...
Any cessation aid improves endothelial function; confirms equivalence of e-cigarettes and NRT on this surrogate.
RCT (n=248)
Single-blind
1:1:1 block-randomization stratified by gender and pack-years
No
Do e-cigarettes with or without nicotine improve cardiovascular surrogate markers compared to nicotine replacement therapy in adult smokers attempting to quit?
Mean Difference: 0.43 (95% CI -0.64–1.5)
Absolute Event Rate: 2.78% vs 2.79%
p-value: p=0.43
E-cigarettes, with or without nicotine, provide similar medium-term cardiovascular benefits to prescription nicotine replacement therapy in smokers attempting to quit.
Klonizakis et al. (2022) conducted an RCT in Smoking cessation (n=248). E-cigarettes (with or without nicotine) vs. Prescription nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) was evaluated on Percentage change in flow-mediated dilation (%FMD) at 6 months (MD 0.43, 95% CI -0.64 to 1.50, p=0.43). Smokers attempting to quit experienced significant improvements in flow-mediated dilation at 6 months, with no significant differences between nicotine-containing e-cigarettes, nicotine-free e-cigarettes, or NRT.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: