Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39006098›Full record

ArticleTobacco prevention & cessation2024

Urgent health concerns: Clinical issues associated with accidental ingestion of new metal-blade-containing sticks for heated tobacco products.

Paola Angela Moro, Francesca Maida, Renata Solimini, Lorenzo Spizzichino, Charlotte G G M Pauwels, Elke Pieper, Anne Havermans

Abstract readCase Reports
In one paragraph

Article in Tobacco prevention & cessation, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–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

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Guideline
  2. Article
  3. Metallic plate in tobacco filters: A new pediatric challenge.Journal of pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition · 2025
    Article
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

7 authors.

Paola Angela MoroPoison Control Center of Niguarda Hospital, Milan, Italy.
Francesca MaidaPoison Control Center of Niguarda Hospital, Milan, Italy.
Renata SoliminiIstituto Superiore di Sanità, National Centre on Addiction and Doping, Rome, Italy.
Lorenzo SpizzichinoMinistry of Health, Rome, Italy.
Charlotte G G M PauwelsCentre for Health Protection, RIVM, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, the Netherlands.
Elke PieperFederal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Unit Product Research and Nanotechnology, Department Chemicals and Product Safety, Berlin, Germany.
Anne HavermansCentre for Health Protection, RIVM, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, the Netherlands.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionRecently, a concerning pattern has emerged in clinical settings, drawing attention to the potential health risks associated with the accidental ingestion, mostly by children, of a new Heated Tobacco Product (HTP) stick, which contains a sharp metal blade inside.

methodsFollowing a webinar of the Joint Action on Tobacco Control 2 project, where data on adverse health incidents related to novel tobacco and nicotine products from EU Member States were presented, the Milan Poison Control Center (PCC) conducted a case series study on the accidental ingestion of blade-containing HTP sticks in Italy, between July 2023 and February 2024. The data in the medical records were analyzed to identify the age distribution, clinical presentation symptoms, performed diagnostic procedures, and medical management.

resultsOverall, 40 cases of accidental ingestion of HTP sticks were identified and are described. A total of 33 (82.5%) children (infants and toddlers, mean age 12.3 ± 3.3 months) were hospitalized. Of these, 29 underwent abdominal X-rays, two children underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy, and one child suffered from cut injuries to the tonsillar pillar and genian mucosa, requiring anesthesia for fibroscopy. The observed clinical cases associated with new HTP sticks containing a metal blade occurred over just eight months. This issue required the immediate implementation of corrective measures to mitigate health risks. The Ministry of Health issued an alert regarding the dangers related to the accidental ingestion of the stick and imposed more visible warnings on the package.

conclusionsIt is of the utmost importance to raise awareness among both the general public and medical practitioners to prevent further cases of accidental ingestion of HTP sticks by infants and toddlers, and ensure a prompt and informed response in emergency situations.

Indexed as

abdominal X-rayschildrenendoscopyheated tobacco product (HTP)ingestionmetal blade

Identifiers

PMID39006098
PMCPMC11243506

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.