Role of e-cigarettes and pharmacotherapy during attempts to quit cigarette smoking: The PaTh Study 2013-16.

Background
More smokers report using e-cigarettes to help them quit than FDA-approved
pharmacotherapy.
Objective
To assess the association of e-cigarettes with future abstinence from cigarette and tobacco
use.
Results. Among daily smokers with an LQA, 23.5% used e-cigarettes, 19.3% used pharmacotherapy
only (including NRT) and 57.2% used no product. Cigarette abstinence for 12+ months at
W3 was ~10% in each group. Half of the cigarette abstainers in the e-cigarette group were
using e-cigarettes at W3. Different methods to help quitting had statistically comparable 12+
month cigarette abstinence at W3 (e-cigarettes vs no product: Risk Difference (RD) = 0.01,
95% CI: -0.04 to 0.06; e-cigarettes vs pharmacotherapy: RD = 0.02, 95% CI:-0.04 to 0.09).
Likewise, daily e-cigarette users at W2 did not show a cessation benefit over comparable
no-e-cigarette users and this finding was robust to sensitivity analyses. Abstinence for 30+
days at W3 was also similar across products.
Limitations
The frequency of e-cigarette use during the LQA was not assessed, nor was it possible to
assess continuous abstinence from the LQA.
Conclusion
Among US daily smokers who quit cigarettes in 2014–15, use of e-cigarettes in that attempt
compared to approved cessation aids or no products showed similar abstinence rates 1–2
years later.

Pierce JP, Benmarhnia T, Chen R, et al. Role of e-cigarettes and pharmacotherapy during attempts to quit cigarette smoking: The PaTh Study 2013-16. PloS one. 2020;15(9):1. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0237938