Cocaine-related admissions to an intensive care unit: a five-year study of incidence and outcomes

Cocaine misuse is increasing and it is evidently considered a relatively safe drug of abuse in Ireland. To address this perception, we reviewed the database of an 18-bed Dublin intensive care unit, covering all admissions from 2003 to 2007. We identified cocaine-related cases, measuring hospital mortality and long-term survival in early 2009. Cocaine-related admissions increased from around one annually in 2003-05 to 10 in 2007. Their median (IQR [range]) age was 25 (21-35 [17-47]) years and 78% were male. The median (IQR [range]) APACHE II score was 16 (11-27 [5-36]) and length of intensive care stay was 5 (3-9 [1-16]) days. Ten patients died during their hospital stay. A further five had died by the time of follow-up, a median of 24 months later. One was untraceable. Cocaine toxicity necessitating intensive care is increasingly common in Dublin. Hospital mortality in this series was 52%. These findings may help to inform public attitudes to cocaine.