Missouri sees first vaping-related death

A Missouri man in his mid-40s died this week at Mercy Hospital in St. Louis, marking Missouri’s first vaping-related death due to e-cigarettes and the eighth vaping-related death nationwide.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services confirmed on Thursday that the death was due to a vaping-related lung injury after lung samples were taken of a Mercy patient who had a history of vaping but normal lung function prior to starting vaping in May 2019.

The man developed mild respiratory symptoms that worsened, leading to hospitalization on Aug. 22 before being transferred to Mercy St. Louis on Sept. 4, according to a news release from the DHSS.

In the case of the Mercy patient, the man’s lungs were unable to provide enough gas exchange, leading to heart failure and near cardiac arrest, the release said.

DHSS has received 22 reports of possible vaping-associated pulmonary illnesses from throughout the state of Missouri since August.

Seven of those cases have been confirmed, nine are still under investigation, and six reports were investigated and did not meet CDC’s case definition.

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