Man, 29, who woke with stabbing pains in chest is left shocked when 'heart ... trends now
A man who feared he was suffering a heart attack was shocked to learn his vaping addiction was to blame instead.
Jordan Snowdon, from Sunderland, was hospitalised with a collapsed lung, which left him suffering stabbing pains in his chest.
Doctors reckon the vape was responsible for his terrifying ordeal, 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 recover fully.
He says he will never vape or smoke again and is urging anyone else hooked on the cheap gadgets to quit.
Jordan Snowdon, from Sunderland, was hospitalised with a collapsed lung, which left him suffering stabbing pains in his chest. Doctors reckon the vape was responsible for his terrifying ordeal, 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 recover fully
He says he will never vape or smoke again and is urging anyone else hooked on the cheap gadgets to quit. In pursuit of a less harmful alternative to smoking, Mr Snowdon swapped cigarettes for e-cigs five years ago
He initially used e-cigs sporadically as he enjoyed the habit. But from 2022, his habit intensified out of boredom. At the height of Mr Snowdon's addiction, he would never be seen without a vape in his hand and had no intention of quitting
In pursuit of a less harmful alternative to smoking, Mr Snowdon swapped cigarettes for e-cigs five years ago.
He initially used e-cigs sporadically as he enjoyed the habit. But from 2022, his habit intensified out of boredom.
At the height of Mr Snowdon's addiction, he would never be seen without a vape in his hand and had no intention of quitting.
But in March, while at his mother's house, he woke to a 'sharp pain' in his chest that left him struggling to breathe.
Recalling the moment his life changed, he said: 'I'd gone to my mum's house that morning and I felt tired so I went and laid down on the bed in my old room and dropped off to sleep.
'I woke up with a sharp pain. It felt like someone had gripped my heart so I shouted for my mum.
'I couldn't talk or breathe properly and I hit the floor and I thought I was having a heart attack.'
Mr Snowdon added: 'I rang 111 and my heart was racing. It felt like my heart was being squeezed and I couldn't breathe.
'I was so scared and I thought I was going to die at this point.'
Scans taken at Sunderland Royal Hospital revealed he had suffered a collapsed right lung — pneumothorax.
It occurs when there's a hole in the lung through which oxygen escapes. As such, air becomes trapped in the space between the lung and the chest wall.
Usually, collapsed lungs are caused by gunshot wounds, rib fractures and ultra-high altitude trekking. Vaping is, however, heavily linked to the injury.
Mr Snowdon needed the trapped air drained from his chest.
He was then transferred to Newcastle Freeman Hospital where surgeons performed keyhole surgery.
Mr Snowdon added: 'I was told I needed an emergency X-ray straight away and they (doctors) confirmed my right lung had collapsed.
'They (the doctors) said it
