Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32850068›Full record

ArticleJournal of community hospital internal medicine perspectives2020

Electronic cigarette survey characteristics.

Jonathan Kopel, Jeff A Dennis, Kenneth Nugent

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of community hospital internal medicine perspectives, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Jonathan KopelDepartment of Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-5934-2695
Jeff A DennisDepartment of Public Health, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-0264-3635
Kenneth NugentDepartment of Internal Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, TX, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionElectronic cigarettes (EC) remain a controversial topic with uncertainty about harm reduction in current smokers, their efficacy in smoking cessation, their potential for addiction, the need for regulation, and the type of information needed to educate the public about the benefits and hazards of EC. Multiple medical institutions and organizations have conducted surveys to investigate the demographics and perceptions of EC consumers in adult and youth populations. However, it is unknown whether these surveys use consistent, reliable, or accurate measures for EC use.

methodsWe analyzed 13 survey articles identified during a review of the use of EC during smoking cessation programs to determine the characteristic features of the surveys and to determine how frequently they satisfied the measurement of important core items suggested by recent articles.

resultsOur analysis focused on 13 studies. These studies represented the work of 13 separate research groups and were published in 10 different biomedical journals with a median impact factor score of 4.1. The median number of participants in the studies was 2,624 (Q1-Q3: 662-6,356); the number of participants ranged from 179 to 19,414. The median number of e-cigarette users in the surveys was 840 (Q1-Q3: 256-3,849). All studies provided clear study goals in their introduction. Five surveys used on-line methods to collect information; four studies provided limited information about the reliability of their data. All studies reported study outcomes and considered limitations. Five studies had limited external validity. None of the surveys collected a complete set of core information recommended by recent authorities on survey methodology for EC.

conclusionsThe surveys reviewed in this project had significant variability in study design, survey population, and study goals. Consequently, comparisons across studies become difficult and limit the external validity of survey studies on EC.

Indexed as

E-cigarettesmethodologysurveys

Identifiers

PMID32850068
PMCPMC7426995

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.