Daily Cigarette Consumption and Urine Cotinine Level between Dual Users of Electronic and Conventional Cigarettes,...

The aim of this study was to identify whether or not the dual users of conventional cigarettes and e-cigs were naturally reducing the amount of their cigarette smoking while they were using e-cigs, and whether their urine cotinine level became similar or less compared to conventional cigarette-only smokers. We used data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), a nationally representative sample collected in 2014-2016. We selected 2,442 participants who were over 19 years old and were current users of conventional cigarettes and e-cigs. Among the total sample, 12.8% were dual users of e-cigs and conventional cigarettes. Conventional cigarette-only users smoked 14.26 (±23.19) cigarettes a day, while dual users of electronic and conventional cigarettes smoked 14.46 (±7.88) cigarettes a day (p < .001). Means of urine cotinine level in conventional cigarette-only users and dual users were 1250.35 ng/mL (±832.75) and 1364.95 ng/mL (±827.96), respectively (p < .001). The result of a multiple linear regression analysis identified that dual users' cotinine level was 136.80 ng/mL higher, compared to conventional cigarette smokers' one (p = .011). Unlike the argument that e-cigs can be used as a smoking cessation aid, we found that using e-cigs might be less likely to support quitting smoking or reducing cigarette consumption.