Use of Electronic Cigarettes Among Cannabis-Naive Adolescents and Its Association With Future Cannabis Use

IMPORTANCE: Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use has been reported to increase the likelihood of future cigarette smoking among adolescents. The prospective association between e-cigarette use and cannabis use has been less clear, especially in recent years. OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between e-cigarette use among cannabis-naive adolescents and cannabis use 1 year later. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study, a nationally representative cohort study, uses a 4-stage, stratified probability sample design to select participants aged 12 years or older from the US civilian, noninstitutionalized population. This study sample included 9828 cannabis-naive adolescents at the baseline survey who participated in both wave 4.5 (2017-2018) and wave 5 (2018-2019) of PATH. EXPOSURES: e-Cigarette use, assessed by ever use, past 12-month use, and past 30-day use. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Cannabis use in wave 5, assessed by past 12-month and past 30-day use. Multivariable logistic regressions assessed the association between e-cigarette use and cannabis use 1 year later. Results were weighted to produce nationally representative findings. RESULTS: Of the 9828 adolescents included in the analysis, 5361 (57.3%) were aged 12 to 14 years, 5056 (50.7%) were male, and 4481 (53.0%) were non-Hispanic White. After adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics, environmental factors, other substance use, and sensation seeking, e-cigarette use among cannabis-naive adolescents was associated with increased likelihoods of both self-reported past 12-month and past 30-day cannabis use 1 year later. The adjusted relative risks (aRRs) of subsequent past 12-month cannabis use with ever use of e-cigarettes was 2.57 (95% CI, 2.04-3.09), with past 12-month use of e-cigarettes was 2.62 (95% CI, 2.10-3.15), and with past 30-day use of e-cigarettes was 2.18 (95% CI, 1.50-2.85). The aRRs of subsequent past 30-day cannabis use with ever use of e-cigarettes was 3.20 (95% CI, 2.10-4.31), with past 12-month use of e-cigarettes was 3.40 (95% CI, 2.17-4.63), and with past 30-day use of e-cigarettes was 2.96 (95% CI, 1.52-4.40). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This cohort study’s findings suggest a strong association between adolescent e-cigarette use and subsequent cannabis use. However, despite the strong association at the individual level, e-cigarette use seems to have had a minimal association with the prevalence of youth cannabis use at the population level.