Dataset Information

Health Effects Associated With Electronic Cigarette Use: Automated Mining of Online Forums.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Our previous infodemiological study was performed by manually mining health-effect data associated with electronic cigarettes (ECs) from online forums. Manual mining is time consuming and limits the number of posts that can be retrieved. OBJECTIVE:Our goal in this study was to automatically extract and analyze a large number (>41,000) of online forum posts related to the health effects associated with EC use between 2008 and 2015. METHODS:Data were annotated with medical concepts from the Unified Medical Language System using a modified version of the MetaMap tool. Of over 1.4 million posts, 41,216 were used to analyze symptoms (undiagnosed conditions) and disorders (physician-diagnosed terminology) associated with EC use. For each post, sentiment (positive, negative, and neutral) was also assigned. RESULTS:Symptom and disorder data were categorized into 12 organ systems or anatomical regions. Most posts on symptoms and disorders contained negative sentiment, and affected systems were similar across all years. Health effects were reported most often in the neurological, mouth and throat, and respiratory systems. The most frequently reported symptoms and disorders were headache (n=939), coughing (n=852), malaise (n=468), asthma (n=916), dehydration (n=803), and pharyngitis (n=565). In addition, users often reported linked symptoms (eg, coughing and headache). CONCLUSIONS:Online forums are a valuable repository of data that can be used to identify positive and negative health effects associated with EC use. By automating extraction of online information, we obtained more data than in our prior study, identified new symptoms and disorders associated with EC use, determined which systems are most frequently adversely affected, identified specific symptoms and disorders most commonly reported, and tracked health effects over 7 years.

SUBMITTER: Hua M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6969389 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Health Effects Associated With Electronic Cigarette Use: Automated Mining of Online Forums.

Hua My M Sadah Shouq S Hristidis Vagelis V Talbot Prue P

Journal of medical Internet research 20200103 1

<h4>Background</h4>Our previous infodemiological study was performed by manually mining health-effect data associated with electronic cigarettes (ECs) from online forums. Manual mining is time consuming and limits the number of posts that can be retrieved.<h4>Objective</h4>Our goal in this study was to automatically extract and analyze a large number (>41,000) of online forum posts related to the health effects associated with EC use between 2008 and 2015.<h4>Methods</h4>Data were annotated with ...[more]

PMID: 31899452

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Project description:Background: The microbiome is increasingly being linked to cancer risk. Little is known about the lung and oral cavity microbiomes in healthy smokers (SM), and even less for electronic cigarette (EC) users, compared healthy never-smokers (NS). Methods: In a cross-sectional pilot study of SM (N=8), EC users (N=10) and NS (N=10) saliva and bronchoscopy-collected bronchoalveolar lavage samples were collected. Bacteria species were identified through metatranscriptome profiling by RNA-sequencing to study associations with the lung and oral microbiome. Pairwise comparisons and linear modeling was assessed with false discovery rates <0.1. Results: Total bacterial load was similar for the SM, EC users and NS, and there was no differences in the bacterial diversity across groups. In the lung, there were 44 bacterial species that were statistically significantly different for SM/NS, 80% of which were decreased in the SM. There were 12 bacterial species that were different for SM/EC users, all of which were decreased, 10 of which were also identified in the SM/NS comparison. The 2 bacterial species unique to SM/EC comparison were Neisseria sp. KEM232 and Curvibacter sp. AEP1-3. From the top 5 decreased species in SM/EC, 3 were also identified in the SM/NS comparison (Neisseria elongata, Neisseria sicca, and Haemophilus parainfluenzae) and 2 of these were unique to the SM/EC comparison (Neisseria zoodegmatis and Ottowia sp. oral taxon 894). There were 8 species increased in SM compared to NS, none of which are known to be clinically significant. In the oral microbiome, 152 bacteria species were differentially abundant for the SM/NS analysis, and only 17 for the EC/NS comparison, all which were also present in SM/NS comparisons. There were 21 bacteria that were differentially abundant in both the lung and oral cavity for SM and NS, 95% also were decreased in the SM. Conclusion: Smoking and EC use do not appear to materially affect the lung microbiome, although differences are noted of unclear clinical significance. Most differentially abundant bacteria decreased, which may be due to a toxic effect of cigarette smoke, including a change in humidity or heating. Given the low number of overlapping oral and lung microbes, the oral microbiome does not appear to be a good surrogate for smoking-related effects in the lung.

Project description:IntroductionPeer online mental health forums are commonly used and offer accessible support. Positive and negative impacts have been reported by forum members and moderators, but it is unclear why these impacts occur, for whom and in which forums. This multiple method realist study explores underlying mechanisms to understand how forums work for different people. The findings will inform codesign of best practice guidance and policy tools to enhance the uptake and effectiveness of peer online mental health forums.Methods and analysisIn workstream 1, we will conduct a realist synthesis, based on existing literature and interviews with approximately 20 stakeholders, to generate initial programme theories about the impacts of forums on members and moderators and mechanisms driving these. Initial theories that are relevant for forum design and implementation will be prioritised for testing in workstream 2.Workstream 2 is a multiple case study design with mixed methods with several online mental health forums differing in contextual features. Quantitative surveys of forum members, qualitative interviews and Corpus-based Discourse Analysis and Natural Language Processing of forum posts will be used to test and refine programme theories. Final programme theories will be developed through novel triangulation of the data.Workstream 3 will run alongside workstreams 1 and 2. Key stakeholders from participating forums, including members and moderators, will be recruited to a Codesign group. They will inform the study design and materials, refine and prioritise theories, and codesign best policy and practice guidance.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval was granted by Solihull Research Ethics Committee (IRAS 314029). Findings will be reported in accordance with RAMESES (Realist And MEta-narrative Evidence Syntheses: Evolving Standards) guidelines, published as open access and shared widely, along with codesigned tools.Trial registration numberISRCTN 62469166; the protocol for the realist synthesis in workstream one is prospectively registered at PROSPERO CRD42022352528.

Project description:IntroductionElectronic cigarettes (ECIGs) expose users to an aerosol containing chemicals, which could affect the respiratory system negatively. This study examined negative respiratory symptoms associated with ECIG use.MethodsIn 2019, adult current ECIG users from 24 US states who reported experiencing negative respiratory symptoms from ECIG use (n = 49; 44.9% women; mean age = 35.2, SD = 11.5) completed an online survey and brainstormed statements that completed the prompt: "A specific negative effect or symptom related to my breathing, nose, mouth, throat, or lungs that I have experienced from vaping/using my e-cigarette is..." Participants sorted the final list of 56 statements into groups of similar content and rated statements on how true they were for them. Multidimensional scaling analysis identified thematic clusters.ResultsEight ECIG use respiratory symptom clusters identified in analysis included Mucus and Congestion, Fatigue, Throat Symptoms, Breathing Problems, Mouth Symptoms, Chest Symptoms, Illness Symptoms, and Nose and Sinus Symptoms. Highly rated (ie, most common) symptoms included dry throat or mouth, fatigue during physical activity, coughing, shortness of breath, excessive phlegm, and bad taste in mouth. Mean cluster ratings did not differ based on lifetime cigarette smoking status (100 lifetime cigarettes smoked), but current cigarette smokers (ie, dual users) rated the Fatigue, Breathing Problems, Mucus and Congestion, and Nose and Sinus Symptoms clusters higher than noncurrent cigarette smokers.ConclusionsParticipant-identified respiratory symptoms perceived to be ECIG related, many similar to cigarette smoking symptoms. Future research should assess if these symptoms are associated with other negative health outcomes.ImplicationsECIG use exposes users to chemicals that may have negative health impacts on the respiratory system. Limited research has examined the broad range of negative respiratory symptoms associated with e-cigarette use. This study identified that ECIG-cigarette users perceive their ECIG use to be associated with negative respiratory symptoms. Many e-cigarette user-reported negative respiratory symptoms are similar to those associated with cigarette smoking, though some appear unique to e-cigarette use. Future research should continue to monitor respiratory symptoms reported by ECIG users and whether these are associated with health outcomes over time.

Dataset Information

Health Effects Associated With Electronic Cigarette Use: Automated Mining of Online Forums.

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Health Effects Associated With Electronic Cigarette Use: Automated Mining of Online Forums.

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