Research Roundup

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are devices that produce a heated aerosol from nicotine-containing e-liquid (Figure 1). Sputum samples from people who use e-cigarettes have shown increased concentrations of oxidative stress-related proteins, which have been implicated in the development of uveitis.

To determine the risk of uveitis among e-cigarette users, Hsu et al (2025) used the TriNetX platform, which is a global database containing de-identified data from over 100 million patients. Randomised data were evaluated for the period between September 2019 and December 2023. A total of 419325 e-cigarette users and 419325 comparators were enrolled.

Data from this cohort study showed that e-cigarette use was associated with increased risk of uveitis, iridocyclitis, unspecified chorioretinal inflammation and retinal vasculitis across the duration of the study. There was an increased uveitis risk among e-cigarette users aged 18 years and over, with this increased risk persisting across all follow-up durations up to 4 years. A higher risk of uveitis was observed in those with a history of both e-cigarette and cigarette use, compared with those with a history of cigarette use only.