fibrin and Cocaine-Related-Disorders

Cocaine use can be associated with a wide spectrum of rheumatic manifestations. It poses a diagnostic challenge as the patients usually withhold the information of cocaine use, and no serological tests are available to establish this diagnosis. We report a patient with vasculopathic syndrome secondary to cocaine use. Despite initial denial of drug abuse, skin biopsy suggested the diagnosis, which was subsequently confirmed by urine drug testing. Differentiating cocaine-associated pseudovasculitis from true vasculitis is necessary, as conventional treatment is usually ineffective without complete abstinence from cocaine use and may be associated with significant morbidity as well as mortality.

Topics: Administration, Oral; Adult; Cocaine; Cocaine-Related Disorders; Female; Fibrin; Glucocorticoids; Humans; Prednisone; Skin; Substance Abuse Detection; Thrombosis; Treatment Outcome; Vasculitis