Introduction
Disposable e-cigarettes are the predominant type of vaping product used by adolescents and pose a significant public health concern. Identifying factors contributing to this growing trend is essential to curbing the vaping epidemic among youths. This study aims to investigate the rowing prevalence and correlates of disposable e-cigarette use among US students.
Methods
Data from 48,437 US middle and high school students from the 2021 and 2022 National Youth obacco Survey (NYTS) were analysed using logistic and ordinal regression models to evaluate disposable e-cigarette use and frequency of use (low, medium, and high) with demographic and psychosocial factors. Weighted prevalence of current e-cigarette use with 95% CIs by device types in 2021 and 2022 were calculated. Odds ratios of correlations of disposable ecigarette use and frequency of use (low, medium, and high) with demographic and pychosocial factors were analysed using logistic and ordinal regression models.
Results
Disposable e-cigarette use increased from 3.9% (95%CI: 3.3-4.7) in 2021 to 5.1% (95%CI: 4.2-6.1) in 2022 and was associated with being female (odds ratio [OR]: 1.57; 95% CI: 1.29-1.91 vs. male), high schoolers (5.14; 3.96-6.67 vs. middle schoolers), having low harm perceptions of e-cigarettes (7.75; 5.58-10.75 vs. lot of harm), and high exposure to marketing (1.57; 1.05-2.35 vs. low exposure). Identifying as LGBTQ (1.41; 1.00-2.00 vs. straight), having low academic performance (2.16; 1.15-4.07, D vs. A grades), and having psychological distress (2.01; 1.64-2.47, severe vs. none) were also linked to increased frequency of use.

Conclusions
This study underscores increasing disposable e-cigarette use among US students, noting existing disparities. It identifies high-risk adolescent subgroups vulnerable to disposable ecigarette use. These findings emphasise the urgency of targeted prevention and stricter regulations on disposable e-cigarettes to combat nicotine addiction among youths.