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Abstract
Objectives
Despite the rapid increase in electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) smoking, little is known about the factors associated with their use, particularly in adolescents with asthma. Our study investigated the prevalence of, and factors associated with asthma.
Methods
We analyzed data from the Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey of 44,479 adolescents with physician-diagnosed asthma and 445,692 subjects without asthma. Sociodemographic factors, psychosocial factors, and e-cigarette smoking patterns were investigated by self-report questionnaires. Multiple logistic regression was used to investigate the factors associated with ever or current e-cigarette risks in adolescents with asthma, with adjustment for confounding factors.
Results
Significantly more subjects had a smoking habit in the asthma group than in the non-asthma group. Among the adolescents with asthma, 4,420 (9.9%) smoked e-cigarettes (ever-users), and 1,962 (4.4%) smoked e-cigarettes within the last 30 days (current users). Multiple logistic regression showed that both ever and current e-cigarette use were significantly associated with male gender, higher family income, residence in an urban area, alcohol drinking, substance use experience, sexual experience, and friends' smoking. Current e-cigarette use was also significantly associated with high caffeine intake, no regular exercise, and experience of violence in adolescents with asthma.
Conclusions
E-cigarette smoking behavior was significantly more frequent in adolescents with asthma than in those without asthma, and multiple psychosocial factors were associated with e-cigarette smoking. Our results could inform e-smoking control programs and help identify adolescents with asthma at high risk of e-cigarette smoking, to ultimately prevent and reduce this behavior.
Declaration of interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.