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common lacerations and/or burns involved the lips, tongue, soft and/ or hard palate, and nose. Thirteen subjects underwent surgeries include oral-maxillofacial surgery or dental implants, bone graft repair, open reduction and internal fixation for preservation of sinus outflow tracts, and iridectomy.
Dekhou said in one extreme case, an e-cigarette malfunctioned and launched into a patient’s mouth and ended up fracturing the person’s cervical spine.
He also noted that users face danger beyond the initial “explo- sion” because of the chemicals that can end up in a patient’s mouth, esophagus, stomach, etc. Dekhou said research for the study found a case in which the patient now has feeding tube because he can no
longer swallow as a result of an e-cigarette explosion.
Dekhou said he hopes more e-cigarette users become aware of such possible dangers before they start using the devices — especially as use increases. According to the 2020 National Youth Tobacco Survey, data show that 38.9 percent of current high school e-cigarettes users use the devices 20 days or more per month, up from 34.2 percent in 2019.
He also hopes that more clini- cians become aware of the poten- tial dangers to properly educate patients.
“When giving patients advice on why to stop smoking...I think that this risk with electronic cigarettes should be discussed, too,” he said. “Because if long-term cough, lung
cancer, and whatnot doesn’t make someone want to stop smoking, perhaps the potential to have their face kind of blown off by an elec- tronic device might.”
Co-authors on the study were Nicole Oska, B.S., student at University of Michigan; Benjamin Partiali, M.D., OUWB Class of 2021; Jared Johnson, M.D. and Michael T. Chung, M.D., both Wayne State University School of Medicine residents; and Adam Folbe, M.D., Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at Beaumont Health,
oyal Oak.
For more information, contact Andrew Dietderich, marketing writer, OUWB, at adietderich@ oakland.edu.
WELCOME OAKLAND UNIVERSITY WILLIAM BEAUMONT CLASS OF 2025
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | WWW.OCMS-MI.ORG
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