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Use and Perceived Risk of Electronic Cigarettes Among North Carolina Middle and High School Students.

Publication ,  Conference
Giovacchini, CX; Pacek, L; McClernon, FJ; Que, LG
Published in: N C Med J
2017

PURPOSE: Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use continues to rise among adolescents, but little is known regarding their risk perceptions of e-cigarette use. We aimed to describe the lifetime use and perceived risk of e-cigarette use in the context of other risk-taking behaviors among adolescents in North Carolina. METHODS: Data were derived from the 2015 North Carolina Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which was administered to 503 middle school and 444 high school students in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro public school district. Survey participants self-reported their sex; ethnicity; school grade; ever-use of cigarettes, e-cigarettes, alcohol, and other illicit substances; perceived risk of harm of these products; and perceived view of their parents' and friends' perceptions of these products. Logistic regression analyses were used to assess associations between student-reported characteristics, risk behaviors, perceived product risk, and ever-use of e-cigarettes. RESULTS: This study found that 4.6% of middle school students and 37.2% of high school students reported ever-use of e-cigarettes. E-cigarette use increased and perception of e-cigarette risk decreased with advancing grade. Ever-use of e-cigarettes surpassed ever-use of combustible cigarettes at all grades; 49.4% of e-cigarette users had never smoked cigarettes. The perception that friends view e-cigarette use as "wrong" correlated negatively with e-cigarette use (adjusted odds ratio = 0.43; 95% confidence interval, 0.19-0.97). LIMITATIONS: Self-reported results from students in one school district have limited generalizability to larger groups. CONCLUSION: E-cigarette use among adolescents in North Carolina correlates positively with perceived friends' views of e-cigarettes, and use correlates negatively with personal perception of the risk of e-cigarettes. Based on our survey results, education and public health intervention regarding e-cigarette use may be best targeted at youth prior to their transition to high school.

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Published In

N C Med J

DOI

ISSN

0029-2559

Publication Date

2017

Volume

78

Issue

1

Start / End Page

7 / 13

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Students
  • Self Report
  • North Carolina
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Health Surveys
  • Health Behavior
  • Female
  • Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems
  • Adolescent
 

Citation

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Giovacchini, C. X., Pacek, L., McClernon, F. J., & Que, L. G. (2017). Use and Perceived Risk of Electronic Cigarettes Among North Carolina Middle and High School Students. In N C Med J (Vol. 78, pp. 7–13). United States. https://doi.org/10.18043/ncm.78.1.7
Giovacchini, Coral X., Lauren Pacek, F Joseph McClernon, and Loretta G. Que. “Use and Perceived Risk of Electronic Cigarettes Among North Carolina Middle and High School Students.” In N C Med J, 78:7–13, 2017. https://doi.org/10.18043/ncm.78.1.7.
Giovacchini CX, Pacek L, McClernon FJ, Que LG. Use and Perceived Risk of Electronic Cigarettes Among North Carolina Middle and High School Students. In: N C Med J. 2017. p. 7–13.
Giovacchini, Coral X., et al. “Use and Perceived Risk of Electronic Cigarettes Among North Carolina Middle and High School Students.N C Med J, vol. 78, no. 1, 2017, pp. 7–13. Pubmed, doi:10.18043/ncm.78.1.7.
Giovacchini CX, Pacek L, McClernon FJ, Que LG. Use and Perceived Risk of Electronic Cigarettes Among North Carolina Middle and High School Students. N C Med J. 2017. p. 7–13.

Published In

N C Med J

DOI

ISSN

0029-2559

Publication Date

2017

Volume

78

Issue

1

Start / End Page

7 / 13

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Students
  • Self Report
  • North Carolina
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Health Surveys
  • Health Behavior
  • Female
  • Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems
  • Adolescent