First off, I don’t like this name and it’s NOT accurate. VAPI (vaping-associated lung injury), the current outbreak as defined by the CDC is actually an outbreak of poisoning. Not dissimilar from a “Foodborne Outbreak” as defined by the CDC.
The culprit it seems is a thickening agent called tocopherols or Vitamin E. It’s used because it’s thick, has no taste, nor odor. So these “drug dealers”, because that’s accurate, are cutting their liquid THC with Vitamin E to make more money. This is NOT a new problem. Here for example is an epidemic of cocaine laced with levamisole.
Nearly two-thirds of cocaine is cut with a substance that can rot human flesh and 80 per cent contains a chemical linked to bladder cancer, a new study has found.
Adam Lusher
Levamisole is supposed to be used by farmers to purge their livestock of parasitic worms. But a study by the addiction treatment website DrugAbuse.com found that it was present in 65 per cent of street cocaine.
Wednesday 14 September 2016 15:33
I think the most recent finding that this “outbreak” is in fact connected to THC cartridges is late…. It doesn’t take a genius to know that people illegally vaping THC will lie about it. Is the medical community really this naive and impotent?
What do we do now? Mass fear, panic and many other issues have been created by this. The CDC has failed us, the medical community has failed us and the government has failed us. Instead of a targeted investigation and appropriate response, we got a media circus spreading fear, misinformation and inaccuracies.
I don’t want at all to turn this in to an argument about THC…. But patients would be far more likely to come forward and tell the truth if the fear of reprisals socially and legally were waived. In fact you should be allowed to say to your doctor that you used a THC cartridge without reprisal. Furthermore, doctors should be asking the right questions and calming fears in patients to get to the truth and treat the patients correctly.
No judgement here, but if you need to use THC…. Do it the old fashioned way =)