“Hitting the vape”: The toxic consequences of Gen Z’s latest trend

Dr Sonnappa’s talk will outline the:

• Similarities and differences between e-cigarettes and tobacco
• What is known about the long term toxicity of e-cigarettes, and the ongoing concerns of the paediatric community
• Scientific studies that show e-cigarettes are not watered down tobacco, but have their own toxicities
• Absolute importance of a strategy to protect children and young people

• What are e-cigarettes and what is in them?
• What is known about the acute toxicity of e-cigarettes?
• What is known about the long-term toxicity of e-cigarettes?
• Long term effects of nicotine addiction in children and young people
• Effects of vaping during pregnancy

Dr Samatha Sonnappa is a consultant in paediatric respiratory medicine has expertise in diagnosing and treating children with:

• asthma
• exercise-induced breathlessness
• wheeze
• chronic cough
• congenital lung abnormalities
• chest infections

She has a special interest in helping young athletes with exercise-induced respiratory symptoms and has a systematic process for the assessment and treatment of athletes under 16 years of age. She offers cardiopulmonary testing and the ‘continuous laryngoscopy during exercise’ (CLE) test to children and young people, which helps her to diagnose exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (EILO), a condition which can cause breathlessness during exercise.

Several children and young people have persistent respiratory symptoms due to long COVID and Dr Sonnappa offers a comprehensive assessment for these children.