A man who feared he was having a heart attack was shocked to learn his vaping addiction was to blame.
Jordan Snowdon, from Sunderland, was hospitalized with a collapsed lung, causing stabbing pains in his chest.
Doctors believe the vape was responsible for his terrifying experience, which left the 29-year-old fearing he would die.
Mr Snowdon, a fisherman, has been told it could take months or even years to fully recover.
He says he will never vape or smoke again and urges anyone else addicted to these cheap devices to quit.
Jordan Snowdon, from Sunderland, was hospitalized with a collapsed lung, causing stabbing pains in his chest. Doctors believe the vape pen was responsible for his terrifying experience, which left the 29-year-old fearing he would die. Mr Snowdon, a fisherman, has been told it could take him months or even years to fully recover.
He says he will never vape or smoke again and urges anyone else addicted to these cheap devices to quit. Looking for a less harmful alternative to smoking, Snowdon switched from cigarettes to e-cigarettes five years ago.
Initially he used e-cigarettes sporadically because he enjoyed the habit. But starting in 2022, his habit intensified out of boredom. At the height of Mr Snowdon’s addiction, he was never seen without a vaporizer in hand and he had no intention of giving it up.
Looking for a less harmful alternative to smoking, Snowdon switched from cigarettes to e-cigarettes five years ago.
Initially he used e-cigarettes sporadically because he enjoyed the habit. But starting in 2022, his habit intensified out of boredom.
At the height of Mr Snowdon’s addiction, he was never seen without a vaporizer in his hand and had no intention of giving it up.
But in March, while at his mother’s house, he woke up with a “sharp pain” in his chest that left him struggling to breathe.
Recalling the moment his life changed, he said: “I went to my mother’s house that morning and I felt tired, so I went and lay down on the bed in my old room and fell asleep.”
‘I woke up with sharp pain. I felt like someone had taken over my heart, so I screamed for my mom.
“I couldn’t speak or breathe properly and I fell to the ground and thought I was having a heart attack.”
Snowdon added: “I called 111 and my heart was racing. I felt like my heart was being squeezed and I couldn’t breathe.
“I was so scared I thought I was going to die at that moment.”
Scans at Sunderland Royal Hospital revealed he had suffered a collapsed right lung – a pneumothorax.
It occurs when there is a hole in the lung through which oxygen escapes. As such, the air is trapped in the space. between the lung and the chest wall.
Collapsed lungs are usually caused by gunshot wounds, rib fractures, and high-altitude hiking. However, vaping is strongly linked to injury.
Mr Snowdon needed the air trapped in his chest drained.
He was then transferred to Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital, where surgeons performed eye surgery.
Snowdon added: “I was told I needed an emergency x-ray immediately and they (doctors) confirmed that my right lung had collapsed.”
‘They (doctors) said it was one of the worst lung collapses they had ever seen.
‘They described it as when you take a packet of crisps and suck on it, that’s what my lung looked like.
‘I mentioned vaping and they said it fit into the three categories of spontaneous lung collapse. I am tall, thin and a smoker.
‘They [the doctors] He said this happened due to vaping. I started crying when I heard that my lung had collapsed.
Scans at Sunderland Royal Hospital revealed he had suffered a collapsed right lung – a pneumothorax. It occurs when there is a hole in the lung through which oxygen escapes. As such, air becomes trapped in the space between the lung and the chest wall. Mr Snowdon needed the air trapped in his chest drained. Pictured is Mr Snowdon after the 6ml drain was inserted.
“I’m a carp fisherman and I love fishing because it helps my mental health and I thought I’d never be able to do this again.”
Experts have previously suggested that tall, thin people who experienced a period of rapid growth as children are at higher risk of developing a hole in the lung.
This is due to the additional stretching that a strong growth spurt puts on the lungs, they say.
After his operation, Mr Snowdon also had a 12ml suction drain inserted into his chest to help keep his lungs inflated.
After being discharged on April 15, he is now recovering at home.
He said: ‘What happened changes my life. It’s devastating. I love being outdoors.
‘I’m still waiting for it [my lung] heal two weeks after my operation. They said it could take weeks, months or even years, it just depends.
‘I haven’t smoked for three weeks and they told me that if I did it would cause an infection.
‘People need to put down the vape and stop smoking. It’s a hot sensation right now.
‘People just vape because their friends do or they just like the taste.
‘They are not considering the dangers involved. “If I had known this could have happened, I would have never touched a vaporizer in my life.”
Last month, the Government took a further step towards phasing out disposable vapes as part of a crackdown on youth vaping after years of impassioned pleas to tackle what has been called an “epidemic”.
Under the proposals, which MPs voted 383 to 67, e-cigarettes are expected to be limited to just four flavours, sold in plain tobacco-style packaging and displayed out of sight of children.
As of February, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has recorded a total of 1,009 reactions to vaporizers. Here are the 10 most common reports.
In addition, new on-site fines will also be imposed for stores that illegally sell vaporizers to children.
Rising rates of use among children have raised fears that younger generations are sleepwalking toward a public health crisis.
Data shows that one in five children has tried vaping, while the number of young people using these devices has tripled in the last three years.
This despite the fact that it is illegal to sell a vaporizer to those under 18 years of age.
E-cigarettes allow people to inhale nicotine in vapor form, which is produced by heating a liquid.
YouUnlike traditional cigarettes, they do not contain tobacco nor do they produce tar or carbon, two of the most dangerous elements and partly why they are considered a safer alternative.
However, the long-term effects of vaping remain a mystery.
Last month, MailOnline also revealed that the number of adverse side effects related to vaping reported to UK regulators has surpassed 1,000, five of them fatal.
All five deaths were related to respiratory and cardiovascular health problems.
Some reported digestive problems such as diarrhea or flatulence, and even one case of rectal bleeding, related to vaping use.