Vape explodes, shatters teen's jaw

There, doctors rushed him into surgery, working to reconstruct and repair shattered bone. Photo / Supplied

A teenage vaper has had emergency surgery to reconstruct a hole in his jaw after his e-cigarette exploded in a freak accident.

The 17-year-old boy, from Nevada, USA, was vamping when his e-cigarette exploded in his face, breaking his teeth and shattering his jaw, Fox 6 Now reports.

It remains unclear what type of e-cigarette was involved in the incident, news.com.au reports.

"People need to know before they buy these devices that there's a possibility they're going to blow up in your pocket, in your face," said Dr Katie Russell, the trauma medical director at the Primary Children's Hospital who treated the teenager.

According to Dr Russell, while being treated, the teen repeatedly said he had no idea his vape could explode.

"At that time, in my career, I had never seen this. I have never heard of this as a possibility," she said.

Dr Russell believes many users aren't even aware e-cigarettes can explode — meaning they don't seek out resources on battery safety.

"I just wanted to get this out there so other people could know that this was possible," she said.

"A pack of cigarettes says this can kill you. While e-cigarettes warn that nicotine is addictive, they seem to offer little information an battery risk."

Earlier this year, a novice vaper from Texas died after using an e-cigarette for the first time. It exploded and cut an artery in his neck.

William Eric Brown, 24, had been trying out the vaporiser pen, which is said to be a safer alternative to smoking tobacco cigarettes The Sun reports.

His grandmother Alice Brown, who he looked after, has warned people about the dangers of vaping.

She told NBC: "He should be alive and living his life now. It's crazy, don't do it.

"He was talking when he got to the hospital.

"Now he's got a new address in heaven."

The exact brand of the device has not been named.

The young electrician from Fort Worth, Texas, was taking his first draws from the e-cigarette he had just bought when it blew up in his face while he was sitting in his car.

Shrapnel then penetrated his head and neck, puncturing his left carotid artery through which blood is pumped from the heart to the brain.

He died several days after the incident after doctors struggled to remove a 7.5cm piece of jagged metal, an inquest found.

One study conducted in 2018 found more than 2000 e-cigarette explosions and burn injuries sent users to US hospital emergency departments from 2015-2017.