Electronic Cigarettes (E-cigarettes) as a Harm Reduction Strategy

February 20, 2020 updated by: NYU Langone Health

Assessing the Use of Electronic Cigarettes (E-cigarettes) as a Harm Reduction Strategy

The purpose of this study is to examine the feasibility of using e-cigarettes as a method for harm reduction and the effects of providing e-cigarettes (or placebo e-cigarettes) on smoking outcomes. Participants will be randomized to receive either e-cigarettes with nicotine cartridges or e-cigarettes with placebo cartridges, and followed for 3 weeks.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

This pilot study will be a two-arm, randomized controlled trial. The investigator will randomize 40 participants into each intervention arm. Participants will be randomized to one of the two arms: e-cigarettes with nicotine cartridges or e-cigarettes with placebo cartridges (0mg). Participants and research assistants will be blind to the allocation of nicotine or placebo e-cigarettes as there are no difference in appearance or odor of the mist emitted from the e-cigarettes with and without nicotine containing cartridges. Participants will be asked to track their nicotine use via text message. All participants will receive a 20-30 minute behavioral counseling consultation with a trained tobacco counselor. Counselors will review each participant's smoking pattern and offer tailored behavioral and environmental change strategies including specific smoking reduction strategy options. Participants will be given a supply of e-cigarettes and followed for 3 weeks

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
100

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • New York
      • New York, New York, United States, 10016
        • New York University School of Medicine

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

21 years to 35 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • 21-35 years old
  • daily smokers who smoke at least 10 cigarettes per day (CPD)
  • interested in reducing CPDs
  • able to provide consent
  • Use a cell phone and are willing/able to receive and respond to daily text messages regarding their cigarette use and e-cigarette use on their cell phone
  • Willing to use an e-cigarette for 3 weeks

Exclusion Criteria:

  • pregnant and/or breast feeding
  • currently using smoking cessation medications (including other forms of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), buproprion, or varenicline)
  • enrolled in a smoking cessation program or another cessation trial
  • have used an e-cigarette in the past 14 days
  • have used any other tobacco products (pipe, cigar, cigarillos, snuff, chewing tobacco, rolling tobacco, or hookah/shisha) in the past 30 days
  • score ≥7 (men) or ≥5 (women) on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C),
  • score ≥ 5 on the Drug Abuse Screening Test-10 (DAST)
  • report having a history of asthma, other airways diseases, or heart disease.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: 4.5% e-cig
e-cigarettes with nicotine cartridges
Device: e-cigarettes
Participants and research assistants will be blind to the allocation of nicotine or placebo e-cigarettes as there are no difference in appearance or odor of the mist emitted from the e-cigarettes with and without nicotine containing cartridges.
Placebo Comparator: 0 mg e-cig
e-cigarettes with placebo cartridges (0mg).
Device: e-cigarettes
Participants and research assistants will be blind to the allocation of nicotine or placebo e-cigarettes as there are no difference in appearance or odor of the mist emitted from the e-cigarettes with and without nicotine containing cartridges.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Changes in the Number of Cigarettes Per Day (CPD)
Time Frame: Baseline up to 3 weeks
Baseline up to 3 weeks
Proportion of Participants Who Achieve 50% Reduction in Number of Cigarettes Per Day at 3 Weeks.
Time Frame: up to 3 weeks
Using the percent difference in number of cigarettes per day from baseline to 3-weeks, the proportion of participants who reduced their cigarette usage per day by 50% or greater
up to 3 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Percent of Participants in Each Arm Who Reported Side Effects
Time Frame: 3 weeks
Percentage of participants who responded yes to a yes/no question about experiencing any side effects
3 weeks
Number of Participants Using Additional Tobacco Products and/or Marijuana
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks
Up to 12 weeks
Percentage Satisfaction Rating for the E-cigarettes
Time Frame: 3 weeks
Percent of participants who reported either "Strongly Agree" or "Agree" to liking using e-cigarettes at 3-weeks
3 weeks
Number of Nicotine Urges/Cravings
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks
Up to 12 weeks
Number of Participants Experiencing Withdrawal Symptoms
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks
No data displayed because Outcome Measure has zero total participants analyzed.
Up to 12 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
NYU Langone Health

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Donna Shelley, MD, NYU Langone Health

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
May 1, 2015

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 26, 2018

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 26, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
September 28, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
December 9, 2015

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
December 11, 2015

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
February 24, 2020

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 20, 2020

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
February 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 14-01178

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

Yes

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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