acute Effects of Electronic and Tobacco Cigarette Smoking on Sympathetic Nerve activity and Blood Pressure in humans.

Introduction:
This text discusses a study examining the acute effects of electronic cigarette (EC) and tobacco cigarette (TC) smoking on sympathetic nerve activity and blood pressure in healthy habitual smokers. The study aims to compare the impact of EC and TC smoking on sympathetic activity by the means of microneurography and on hemodynamic parameters.

Key Points:

* The study involved 12 healthy normotensive habitual male TC smokers.
* The study design was randomized and sham controlled with three experimental sessions: sham smoking, TC smoking, and EC smoking.
* after baseline measurements, participants were asked to smoke two TC cigarettes containing 1.1 mg nicotine, smoke an EC, or simulate smoking with a drinking straw with a filter (sham smoking).
* MSNa, SSNa, blood pressure, and heart rate were measured at baseline and during each smoking phase.
* The results showed that EC smoking at 5 and 30 minutes compared to baseline was accompanied by the augmentation of mean arterial pressure and heart rate.
* The muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNa) decrease was significant during both TC and EC sessions and was similar between them.
* Both decreases were significantly higher than that elicited by sham smoking, although this was not significant by itself.
* Skin sympathetic nerve activity increase was significant in both TC and EC groups and similar between them.

Main Message:
The unfavorable responses of sympathetic and arterial pressure to EC smoking are similar to those elicited by TC in healthy habitual smokers. This study provides evidence for the potential mechanisms of the adverse effects of EC smoking on the cardiovascular and autonomic system. It highlights the need for further research on the long-term effects of EC use on cardiovascular health.

Dimitriadis K, Narkiewicz K, Leontsinis I, et al. acute Effects of Electronic and Tobacco Cigarette Smoking on Sympathetic Nerve activity and Blood Pressure in humans. International journal of environmental research and public health. 2022;19(6). doi:10.3390/ijerph19063237