title: The surgical abdomen associated with cocaine abuse.
abstract: Cocaine use is common and is associated with gastrointestinal complications that can present as a surgical abdomen. We report a case of a previously healthy 25-year-old man who presented to the Emergency Department with severe abdominal pain and vomiting after using IV cocaine. Exploratory celiotomy revealed massive free intraperitoneal (IP) clotted blood with no evidence of underlying pathology. This unusual case underscores the possibility of life-threatening hemorrhage in cocaine consumers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.
authors.forename: Charles F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Bellows
authors.forename: Aml M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Raafat
mesh_terms: D000006:Abdomen, Acute / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D000328:Adult; D019970:Cocaine-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006471:Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007813:Laparotomy / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016896:Treatment Outcome