HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Connecticut’s Department of Public Health commissioner is urging residents not to use e-cigarette or vaping products, at least until more is known about why people are becoming ill.

The department announced Friday that five more people became sick with lung injuries possibly related to using e-cigarettes or vaping. That brings the total to 18 cases reported to the department. Of those who were hospitalized, half required treatment in an intensive care unit.

Health department officials say all the hospitalized patients have been discharged.

The patients come from six counties. They include four people under the age of 18; 11 between the ages of 18 and 34; and three who are 35 years and older.

The department is now requiring health care providers and facilities to report all incidents of unexplained vaping-related lung injuries.

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