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One-Year Medical Outcomes and Emergency Department Recidivism After Emergency Department Observation for Cocaine-Associated Chest Pain
Rebecca Cunningham, MD
Interesting article. As those of you who have been following the literature on cocaine related chest pain know over the last few years there has been more and more suspicion that cocaine chest painers are low risk and are using a disproportionate amount of resources. The other school of thought is that having chest pain with cocaine is like failing a stress test and should be treated as such.
Cocaine Chest Pain Thread
This article seems to indicate that cocaine chest painers do have a low rate of subsequent MI in the year after their ED visit. However its very important to note that this studys protocol excluded 23% of their cocaine + chest painers due to high risk features such as on going chest pain, history, CHF, acute EKG changes and elevated troponins. So the things that should make you concerned about ACS with regular people should make you concerned in cocaine users.
Here's the abstract.
Rebecca Cunningham, MD
Interesting article. As those of you who have been following the literature on cocaine related chest pain know over the last few years there has been more and more suspicion that cocaine chest painers are low risk and are using a disproportionate amount of resources. The other school of thought is that having chest pain with cocaine is like failing a stress test and should be treated as such.
Cocaine Chest Pain Thread
This article seems to indicate that cocaine chest painers do have a low rate of subsequent MI in the year after their ED visit. However its very important to note that this studys protocol excluded 23% of their cocaine + chest painers due to high risk features such as on going chest pain, history, CHF, acute EKG changes and elevated troponins. So the things that should make you concerned about ACS with regular people should make you concerned in cocaine users.
Here's the abstract.
