Most physicians have misconceptions about e-cigarettes, depriving patients with accurate information on the alternatives available to help them quit smoking, according to a major US study.
“Physicians play a primary role in patient smoking cessation, yet their communication regarding e-cigarettes is not well understood,” according to the Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network Open in April.
The national cross-sectional survey asked 2,058 U.S. physicians from family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, cardiology, pulmonary and oncology in 2018 and 2019 about their communication with patients about e-cigarettes. Data were analyzed from August to September 2021. JAMA is a peer-reviewed medical journal published 48 times a year by the American Medical Association.
“As the evidence base grows for e-cigarette efficacy for smoking cessation, physicians’ understanding of e-cigarettes in the context of harm reduction must keep pace with the emerging scientific evidence through effective educational opportunities. Such opportunities should address e-cigarette safety and efficacy and correct misperceptions that all tobacco products are equally harmful,” it said.
The results of the Rutgers study are consistent with the observation of the panelists in the recent Global Forum on Nicotine (GFN) 2022 topic “Misinformation: Who can we Trust”. The panelists said physicians and other health professionals are among those who contribute to misinformation about smoke-free products such as e-cigarettes.
Dennis Gutierrez – Inquirer – 2022-07-05.
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