在吸食大麻的人群中，维生素E被怀疑与严重的肺病有关

在吸食大麻的人群中，维生素E被怀疑与严重的肺病有关

It's still a mystery — what's causing the cluster of severe respiratory illnesses among people who've used e-cigarettes? The FDA says there have been at least 215 reported cases in 25 states.

这仍然是一个谜——是什么导致了使用电子烟的人患上一系列严重的呼吸道疾病?美国食品药品监督管理局表示，在25个州至少有215例报告病例。

Nearly three dozen of those cases are in New York state, and investigators there say they are now regarding vitamin E as a possible culprit. Health officials say state lab tests detected high levels of vitamin E in cartridges of cannabis vaping products used by people who vaped and suffered serious lung damage.

纽约州有近36个这样的病例，那里的调查人员说，他们现在认为维生素E可能是罪魁祸首。卫生官员表示，国家实验室检测发现，吸食大麻并遭受严重肺部损伤的人所使用的大麻电子烟产品的烟管中含有高水平的维生素E。

Vitamin E is usually safe as a dietary supplement or cream, but vaping it could be harmful, according to state health Commissioner Howard Zucker.

美国国家卫生专员霍华德·朱克表示，维生素E作为膳食补充剂或奶油通常是安全的，但电子烟可能有害。

When it is "inhaled deep in the lung, [it] can cause problems," Zucker tells NPR. He says the lab has found very high amounts of vitamin E in 13 of the patient-submitted cartridges they've analyzed. "As high as even 50 percent of the liquid that is in the vaping [cartridge]."

朱克告诉美国国家公共电台，当它“被吸入肺部深处，(它)可能会引起问题。”他说，实验室在他们分析的13个病人提交的烟管中发现了非常高的维生素E含量。“甚至高达电子烟(药筒)中液体的50%。”

It was not found in cartridges from patients that contained only nicotine. It's not clear whether some patients vaped both cannabis and nicotine products.

Zucker also notes that they haven't ruled out other substances, and the Food and Drug Administration says it isn't convinced that vitamin E is to blame.

在仅含尼古丁的病人烟管中没有发现这种物质。目前还不清楚一些患者是否同时吸大麻和尼古丁产品。朱克还指出，他们还没有排除其他物质，美国食品和药物管理局表示，它不相信维生素E是罪魁祸首。

"More information is needed to better understand whether there's a relationship between any specific products or substances and the reported illnesses," FDA senior adviser Michael Felberbaum says in an emailed statement Thursday.

美国食品和药物管理局的高级顾问米歇尔菲尔伯鲍姆在周四的一份电子邮件声明中说:“要更好地了解特定产品或物质是否与报告的疾病有关系还需要更多的信息。”

"The number of samples we have received continues to increase and we now have over 100 samples for testing," Felberbaum says. "The FDA is analyzing samples submitted by the states for the presence of a broad range of chemicals, including nicotine, THC and other cannabinoids along with cutting agents/diluents and other additives, pesticides, opioids, poisons and toxins. No one substance, including Vitamin E acetate, has been identified in all of the samples."

菲尔伯鲍姆说:“我们收到的样本数量继续增加，现在我们有100多个样本在进行检测。美国食品药品监督管理局正在分析各州提交的样本中是否含有多种化学物质，包括尼古丁、四氢大麻酚和其他大麻素，以及切削剂/稀释剂和其他添加剂、杀虫剂、阿片类药物、毒药和毒素。在所有的样本中（包括维生素E醋酸盐）没有一种物质被发现。”

Vitamin E is not an approved additive for vape products approved by New York's medical marijuana program, and Zucker says the cartridges they tested appear to be "black-market" products purchased off the street — not in medical dispensaries.

维生素E并不是纽约医用大麻项目批准的电子烟产品的添加剂，朱克说，他们测试的烟管似乎是在街头购买的“黑市”产品，而不是在药房购买的。

"This is a situation of people buying products that have been laced with markedly elevated amounts of vitamin E," Zucker says.

朱克说:“这是一种人们购买含有大量维生素E的产品的情况。”

"We urge the public to be vigilant about any vaping products that they or any family members may be using and to immediately contact their health care provider if they develop any unusual symptoms" he says in the health department statement. "In general, vaping of unknown substances is dangerous, and we continue to explore all options to combat this public health issue."

他在卫生部的声明中说:“我们提醒公众对他们自己或任何家庭成员可能使用的任何电子烟产品保持警惕，如果他们出现任何不同寻常的症状，请立即联系他们的医疗服务人员。”“总的来说，吸不明物质的电子烟是危险的，我们将继续探索所有解决这一公共卫生问题的方法。”

Zucker says the number of cases of vaping-associated pulmonary illnesses has been rising, and that people who vape should be warned not to buy unregulated products purchase off the street. "These unregulated products are not tested and may contain harmful substances," the department warns.

朱克说，与电子烟有关的肺部疾病的病例一直在上升，应该警告吸电子烟的人不要在街上购买不受管制的产品。该部门警告称:“这些不受监管的产品没有经过检测，可能含有有害物质。”

On Wednesday, Oregon officials reported that a middle-aged adult who died of a severe pulmonary illness in late July had used a cannabis product purchased from one of Oregon's state-regulated marijuana stores. That case is under investigation. The death of a second person was reported in Illinois in late August.

周三，俄勒冈州官员报告称，7月底，一名中年人死于严重肺部疾病，他使用了从俄勒冈州一家大麻商店购买的大麻产品，而这家商店受州监管。那件事正在调查中。据报道，8月底伊利诺斯州又有一人死亡。