Effects of cocaine on the coronary arteries
A study published in the American Heart Journal, commences with the following statement: “A number of studies have documented myocardial ischemia and infarction associated with cocaine use.” The authors did not think that a recreational dose of cocaine, though it increased heart rate by 30 beats and blood pressure by 20/10 mm hg, was significant enough to cause the well-documented sudden cardiac arrest associated with even small doses of cocaine. They noted that Cardiovascular toxicity is broad (cocaine use) ranging from acute aortic dissection or rupture to stoke. Important cardiac complications include sudden death, acute reversible myocarditis, dilated cardiomyopathy, life-threatening arrhythniias, and myocardial ischemia and infarction’. The study found that cocaine causes the diameter of the coronary artery to constrict while at the same time increasing the heart’s need for oxygen. Additionally, they found that cocaine creates a milieu that is favourable to thrombosis (blood clotting). Their conclusion was that these effects, coupled with changes in blood platelets, all worked together to contribute to cardio-vascular problems associated with cocaine use.
Source: Effects of cocaine on the coronary arteries, BS Benzaquen et al, American heart journal, 1 September 2001 (volume 142 issue 3 Pages 402-410 DOI: 10.1067/mhj.2001.117607)
Cocaine toxic effect on endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation: an in vitro study on rabbit aorta
This study examined the toxic effect of cocaine on the vascular system of rabbit hearts. The authors commented that “These findings contribute to clarifying the toxicological profile of cocaine on the vascular target, providing a further explanation for cocaine’s capacity to induce vascular disorders.”
Source: Author G.I. Togna et al. I Toxicology Letters 123 (2001) 43-50
Cocaine induced hypokalaemic periodic paralysis
A recent report in a medical journal discusses ‘episodes of paralysis after engaging in a cocaine binge,’ and states that the use of cocaine has been associated with a number of psychiatric, medical and neurological complications.
Source: Author Lajara-Nanson, Journal Neurol Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, 73:86-95,2002.
Epidemic Crack Cocaine Use Linked with Epidemics of Genital Ulcer Disease and Heterosexual HIV Infection in the Bahamas
A crack cocaine epidemic in the Bahamas, which began in 1982, was found to be the primary factory leading to an epidemic of Genital Ulcer Disease (GUD) and heterosexual HIV infection in that country. By 1999 the Bahamas had the highest rate of reported AIDS in the northern hemisphere. The authors wrote: “The important role of crack cocaine use in facilitating transmission of STD… among inner-city populations in the United States has been repeatedly described. Several studies have shown the risk behaviours associated with use of cocaine, and an increased risk of transmission has been demonstrated to be a consequences of trading sex for drugs. The phenomenon of crack cocaine-enhanced transmission of STD, including HIV infection, has not yet been extensively documented outside North America and the Caribbean. Nonetheless, recognition of this association in North America has alerted other countries to be vigilant in avoiding the crack cocaine epidemic.”
Source: Author Gomez et al, Sexually Transmitted Diseases – May 2002
Cocaine Use, Hypertension, and End-State Renal Disease
A number of recent studies have noted a correlation between kidney failure (end-stage renal disease – ESRD), high blood pressure (hypertension – HTN) and the use of cocaine. In the U.S., Medicare, funded by federal tax dollars, covers the cost of dialysis and transplantation. This study evaluated 193 black patients from two urban hemodialysis units. The authors noted that “Cocaine use among blacks has increased nearly 100% since 1985, now accounting for approximately 23% of U.S. cocaine use. Cocaine use has been linked to HTN, cardiac and cerebrovascular events and acute renal failure, but only recently to chronic renal failure. 113 of the subjects had HTN-ESRD and of those 49 had used cocaine, either alone or in combination with other drugs.
Source: Author Norris et al, American Journal of Kidney Diseases, Vol 28, No. 3, (September),: pp523-528,2001