Young Cocaine Users at Risk for Heart AttacksAugust 16, 2001
Research Summary
A recent report shows that using cocaine increased the risk of a heart attack by 25 percent in a study group, HealthScout News reported Aug. 12.Dr. Adnan I. Qureshi, assistant professor of neurosurgery at the University of Buffalo in New York, and colleagues studied more than 10,000 people between the ages of 18 and 45. Of that number, 532 people had used cocaine more than 10 times.
The research indicated that the frequent users had seven times the rate of heart attack as nonusers. Even taking into account other heart-attack risks, researchers determined that those who used cocaine just 12 times before turning 45 increased their risk of a heart attack by 25 percent.
"The magnitude of the association was rather surprising," said Qureshi.
Dr. Richard Stein, chief of cardiology at Brooklyn Hospital Center in New York, added, "The number of 25 percent, I think, is important. You're looking at a young population where heart attacks are unlikely. If you say to a young person in their 30s, 'Look, your risk of a heart attack is small, but it's 25 percent greater if you use cocaine' -- that is a very powerful statement."
Researchers determined that cocaine damages the heart muscle by narrowing blood vessels and reducing blood flow. This occurs because cocaine speeds up nerve impulses, increasing the force of heart contractions.
"The same things that have been addressed for the past 50 years with cigarette smoking need to be looked at for cocaine use," said Dr. David Gorelick, chief of the clinical pharmacology section at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). "Certainly this study doesn't surprise me, if you know what cocaine does to the body. It's been shown in both animal and human studies."
Qureshi said further research is needed to examine the actual mechanisms by which cocaine induces heart attacks. Qureshi also plans to follow up on previous studies which indicated that cocaine use could be linked to strokes among young people.
The study is published in the journal Circulation.
COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE: