E-cigarettes for Harm Reduction in Adults With Asthma

This study will use an unequally allocated between-subjects (N=30) randomized, controlled design to investigate the influence of complimentary electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) provision on combustible cigarette and ENDS use, cigarette dependence, pulmonary function, clinical indicators and biomarkers, and substitution of smoking for ENDS use over 16 weeks. Participants will be adults from the local community with persistent asthma symptoms who are regular combustible cigarette smokers and do not also regularly use ENDS. The study will recruit 30 non-treatment seeking participants using flyers, advertisements, a website triaging visitors to the Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, and through targeted recruitment at community immunology clinic partners at Rhode Island Hospital as facilitated by mentor McQuaid. Participants meeting eligibility criteria will be assessed at baseline and then randomized to one of two study conditions: a complimentary ENDS provision condition or assessment-only control. Participants will return for eight weekly visits to complete follow-up assessments; participants in the experimental condition will be provided with additional e-liquid cartridges for their ENDS devices at all follow-up visits. Tobacco use behaviors (cigarette and ENDS) and lung function will be assessed at each visits, with additional collection of biological samples and assessments of nicotine dependence, self-efficacy for cessation, and mood at week eight. Provision of complimentary ENDS will discontinue eight weeks after enrollment. Participants will complete a remote follow-up assessment sixteen weeks after enrollment. This project, and all projects at the Center for Addiction and Disease Risk Exacerbation (CADRE) are supported by the Clinical Laboratory Core (CLC) which will oversee the collection and storage of data and biological samples.