I'm reading that it was THC vapes, not nicotine, when any kind was specified. This article I thought did a nice job laying out what is known. Your advice, of course, is also timely and smart.

https://reason.com/2019/08/23/that-vaping-linked-lung-disease-might-not-really-be-linked-to-vaping/

If I were the kind to say I told you so.......
I have been on many media platforms talking about this, but was too ahead of the curve.
What is being seen is lipoid pneumonia/pneumonitis and bronchiolitis obliterans(popcorn lung)from a couple sources.
Lipoid pneumonia is caused by native waxes and fatty compounds found in nonpolar extracts and the MCT used to liquify it. Exposure to wax is limited to 2mg/ 8hr period industrially. Trichome waxes often are over ten percent of a nonpolar extract and one vape hit can exceed that limit.
The other issue, bronchiolitis obliterans, is caused by flavored “juice” and is linked to diacetal and other compounds in flavor additives.
I was widely panned for telling people their dabs were not good and that “juice” was bad even as a said these cases would stack up misdiagnosed for an extended period before a correct diagnosis and link to vaping is established.
I have files of info on this issue and have been sadly waiting for these articles to appear. Now that it is being fleshed out I can be contacted for further information.
I would add that legal extracts are not analyzed for lipid content and are just as bad as illegal nonpolar extracts for native waxes. Things like crumble and shatter have the consistency they do due to native waxes. Until concentrates are analyzed for lipid content all concentrates will contribute to this problem