![]() ![]() Lipoid pneumonia is marked by such symptoms as shortness of breath, coughing, and chest pain, all of which have been reported by those presenting at hospitals with vaping-related lung ailments. Notably, the presence of lipid-laden macrophages in a person’s lungs is also used to diagnose lipoid pneumonia, a rare type of lung condition caused by inhaling these fat particles. Lipid-laden macrophages are extremely unusual and have a distinctive appearance, Scott Aberegg, lead author and U of U Health critical care pulmonologist, said in a press release. When researchers examined samples from the patients’ lungs, they found in the patients’ cells the presence of lipid-laden macrophages, or macrophages that contain fat particles. This is ultimately what University of Utah researchers believe is happening with these vaping cases, except with macrophages in the lungs. In people with healthy immune systems, macrophages are able to distinguish between “good” and “bad” cells in people with inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s, it is believed that the macrophages in the intestinal system are unable to make this distinction, and end up attacking the wrong types of cells. Yet we don’t actually have the answer to one extremely important question: What is actually causing these health issues linked to vaping? While some theories have been put forth, including that vitamin E in bootleg THC cartridges may be playing a role, a new study in the New England Journal of Medicine sheds further light on some potential answers.Īccording to the study, which examined six vaping-related cases at University Hospital in Salt Lake City, the illnesses caused by vaping may be linked to a certain type of white blood cells called macrophages, which help protect your immune system by essentially trapping potentially dangerous viruses and bacteria and digesting them. With hundreds of cases of mysterious, vaping-related lung ailments reported in more than 33 states, and more than six vaping-related deaths reported in the United States, the potential health issues that may arise from vaping are now impossible to ignore, to the degree that even President Trump has declared it a health crisis. ![]() Over the past few weeks, the tone of the discussion over the health issues raised by vaping has evolved from quiet concern to full-blown nationwide panic. ![]()
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