Complications of Cocaine Abuse

Excerpt

To the editor: The use of cocaine has reached epidemic proportions in several areas in America. In Europe, the number of users is steadily growing, as is the occurrence of organic damage associated with cocaine abuse. The number of cocaine-related deaths has increased in such a way that the image of cocaine as a safe "recreational" drug may no longer be tenable (1). Up to 1986, five cases of cerebrovascular accidents temporally related to cocaine abuse had been reported (2). In four cases, subarachnoid hemorrhage occurred after rupture of aneurysms or arteriovenous malformations within minutes of intranasal administration of cocaine.