Sudden death of a cocaine abuser.
We report an autopsy case of a 28-year-old male who died after intravenous use of cocaine. Cocaine and ecgonine methyl ester, the major metabolite of cocaine, were detected in the blood with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Postmortem examination showed contraction band necrosis together with patchy fibrosis and inflammatory cell infiltration in the heart. The sudden death appeared to be caused by a cardiac disorder associated with arrhythmia or coronary vasoconstriction.
Osawa
M
M
Department of Forensic Medicine, Tokai University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan.
Mitsukuni
Y
Y
Saito
T
T
Yukawa
N
N
Matoba
R
R
Takeichi
S
S
D000328:Adult; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000150:complications; D003042:Cocaine / Q000097:blood; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000503:physiopathology; D016757:Death, Sudden, Cardiac / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009206:Myocardium / Q000473:pathology; D009336:Necrosis; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D014661:Vasoconstriction
D003042:Cocaine