Factors and motivations associated with use of e-cigarette among primary care patients in a prospective cohort study: e-TAC study protocol.

INTRODUCTION: While the relationship between electronic cigarette use and smoking has often been studied, the association between electronic cigarette use and socioeconomic factors has received less attention. This is a study protocol aiming to describe the relationship between the consumption of psychoactive products (in particular: smoking) or some socioeconomic factors and the evolution of the use of electronic cigarette in primary healthcare over 1 year.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Electronic cigarette, Tobacco, Alcohol and Cannabis (e-TAC) is a prospective multisite cohort study, including 473 patients at baseline and carrying out in general practices in the Aquitaine area (France). The volunteer patients participated in the study regardless of their initial reason for consultation. They filled out a self-administered questionnaire at baseline and will also do so after 12 months by phone, email or letter. The study will focus on the factors that explain the experimentation with or the current use of the electronic cigarette, as well as factors associated with their evolutions over time using multivariate logistic regression modelling or Cox regression modelling.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study received ethical approval from the University of Bordeaux Committee for the protection of persons. It was also approved by the National Commission for Data Processing and Freedoms. Findings will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals and we will disseminate them by presentations at national or international conferences.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: RCB: 2015-A00778-41; Pre-results.