This archive report was first published on 1 September 2019.
Published on September 1, 2019, a television interview with Kevin Burns, Juul Labs' CEO, revealed his concerns about the recent surge in teenage vaping. However, he denied any evidence linking the recent cases to Juul's products.
Dr. Dixie Harris, a critical care pulmonologist in Salt Lake City, has consulted on four patients and reviewed case files of nine others in the state. She described the illnesses as looking like a serious viral or bacterial pneumonia on lung scans, but tests showed no infection.
Dr. Harris' first encounter with the mysterious illness was on August 6, when she was called to the intensive care unit to consult on a patient with severe lung ailment. The patient was a heavy e-cigarette user who also vaped THC.
As she consulted with two dozen hospitals around the state, Dr. Harris noticed a pattern of similar cases. She said, “I saw a second case, I’m like, ‘Wait a second, this is weird — two hospitals, two young people, almost identical story.’”
Dr. Harris' concerns led her to contact Dr. Joseph Miner, the chief medical officer for the Utah state health department. He assured her that he would try to figure out what was going on.
Over the ensuing weeks, Dr. Harris saw two other patients firsthand and reviewed nine other cases for the hospital group where she works, Intermountain Healthcare. The state of Utah reported 21 cases, with the first 10 cases coming from eight different hospitals.
