Use of electronic cigarettes among Romanian university students: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND Because electronic cigarettes are relatively new, data on usage patterns and factors which influence them are sparse. Hence, this study aims at assessing awareness, beliefs about electronic cigarettes and experimentation with them among university students from Romania- a country where the sales and marketing of these products are widespread. Secondly, correlates of electronic cigarette experimentation will also be investigated. METHODS A cross-sectional study was performed by means of anonymous questionnaires among 480 students, aged 19-24, from Cluj-Napoca, Romania, between April-May 2013. RESULTS The results show that 92.5% of the students have heard about e-cigarettes; out of these, one quarter (53.3% of the smokers, 25% of the ex-smokers, 5.5% of the non-smokers) have tried electronic cigarettes at least once during lifetime. The results of the multinomial logistic regression point out that the correlates of electronic cigarette experimentation were: male gender, being a smoker of traditional cigarettes, having friends who experimented with electronic cigarettes, having stronger beliefs that electronic cigarettes could help them quit smoking and being less convinced that they are used only by smokers. The explained variance was 59%. CONCLUSIONS The results underline the importance of addressing the issue of e-cigarette use through health education programs and regulatory interventions, since e-cigarettes are a reality faced by the Romanian youth.