Parenteral illegal drug use and limb loss.
The problem of illegal drug abuse and extremity loss was identified in 27 patients-22 men and 5 women, with a mean age of 26 years. Associated medical problems included: smoking in 27, cardiac disease in 2, diabetes in 3, and hypertension in 3. Six femoral pseudoaneurysms, 2 with distal emboli and all with sepsis and thrombosis, directly contributed to limb loss along with 2 patients with progressive phlegmasia dolens. There were 3 below-the-elbow, 7 above-the-knee, 11 below-the-knee, and 6 transmetatarsal amputations. Eight patients received prostheses; 8 patients subsequently died in follow-up.
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Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana.
Vasiljevich
J M
JM
Kerstein
M D
MD
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000671:Amputation, Surgical / Q000401:mortality / Q000592:standards*; D002423:Cause of Death; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006783:Hospitals, State; D006801:Humans; D008145:Louisiana / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D019736:Prostheses and Implants / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000150:complications*; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery