Glasgow volunteers who want to quit smoking invited for e-cig study

Doctors and scientists funded by the British Heart Foundation are looking for 100 healthy volunteers to take part in the Vapour pilot.

They are hoping to investigate the effect of vaping in comparison to nicotine replacement patches on the blood vessels and lungs.

People taking part in the study will be randomly assigned to either electronic cigarettes or patches for 12 weeks.

They will all also receive weekly community smoking cessation sessions run by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Those taking part will be asked to attend two study visits to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

Tests will include blood and urine samples, blood pressure and lung function assessment and non-invasive blood vessel ultrasound.

James Cant, director at the British Heart Foundation Scotland, said: "We all know smoking tobacco raises our risk of suffering from cardiovascular disease.

"E-cigs have been hailed by some as a great way to help smokers quit but little is actually known about their impact on our heart and circulatory system which is why we are funding this research to help us better understand the effects on our health."

The study is being run by Daniele Kerr, a vascular surgeon and a BHF funded clinical research fellow at Glasgow University.

She said: "Every day, myself and many other healthcare professionals ask patients to stop smoking.

"The evidence shows the public currently choose to use electronic cigarettes as their preferred method to help them stop smoking, despite not being currently available on the NHS."

Ms Kerr said the study had been designed to help healthcare professionals answer when people ask about the health effects of electronic cigarettes and whether they should use one to help them stop.

Any healthy smoker who is looking to quit and wants to take part in the Vapour study can contact Daniele Kerr on 0141 330 2627 or 07570 047819 or email Cams-INS-Vapour@glasgow.ac.uk