FREQUENT COCAINE USE LINKED TO EARLY HEART ATTACKS

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Nearly one in four nonfatal heart attacks
suffered by people between the ages of 18 and 45 may be attributed to
regular cocaine use, a new study reports.

The reason may be that regular cocaine use constricts blood vessels and
accelerates hardening of the arteries, according to lead author Dr. Adnan
I. Qureshi.

More than 30 million Americans have tried cocaine and 5 million report
regular use, the researchers note in their report published in the January
30th issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

Qureshi and his colleagues from the University at Buffalo, State University
of New York, used information from the Third National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey, a large population-based study, to evaluate if a link
exists between cocaine use and nonfatal heart attack and stroke.

Of the 10,085 men and women included in the study, 532 (roughly 1 of every
20 people surveyed) reported regular use of the illicit drug, which was
defined as using the drug 10 to more than 100 times in their lives, the
report indicates.

The risk of a nonfatal heart attack was 25% higher in those who reported
regular cocaine use, the authors note.

An association was not found between cocaine use and nonfatal stroke.

In general, the researchers found that men reported higher cocaine use than
women, and blacks used the drug more frequently than whites. In addition,
regular users of the drug were more likely to be smokers and have high
blood pressure--conditions that can increase a person's risk of developing
heart disease.

"Behavior modification by public awareness and education may reduce (the
occurrence of nonfatal heart attacks) associated with cocaine use," Qureshi
and colleagues conclude.