Acute Myocardial Infarction Following Cocaine Abuse in a Young Woman With Normal Coronary Arteries

RECREATIONAL use of cocaine has increased dramatically in the last decade. One factor in this trend is the general belief that cocaine is not harmful, a concept supported by the relative scarcity of reports concerning its ill effects. Prior reports of myocardial infarction associated with cocaine occurred in individuals with preexistent angina or myocardial infarction. We report here the case of a young woman without evident heart disease who suffered an acute myocardial infarction associated with cocaine abuse. Report of a Case A 28-year-old woman began to use cocaine in her early 20s and gradually increased her use to more than 1 g/day. For the year prior to the day of admission she had abstained from use of this or any other drug. She used no tobacco or oral contraceptives and had normal levels of blood glucose and lipids. There was no personal or family history of cardiovascular disease. On