Cocaine-induced acute myocardial infarction: angiographic features and outcomes

Cocaine is a global health burden and the cause of a significant number of emergency department consultations. Its association with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is known, however, data are still rare. The aim of this study was to define causative pathologies behind cocaine-induced AMI (CI-AMI) and to analyze their clinical features.

Patients with the diagnosis of CI-AMI were retrospectively identified at the University Hospital Zurich between 1997 and 2023. The angiograms were reviewed to confirm the diagnosis. Coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) was separately evaluated by an angiography-based analysis (AngioPlus Core, Microport Medical Co.). The primary endpoint was rates of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) at 30 days, 1 year, and 2 years.

Forty-five cases of CI-AMI were identified. Twelve patients (27%) were diagnosed with plaque rupture and intraluminal thrombus, eight (18%) with coronary artery disease (CAD) without thrombus formation, eight (18%) with spontaneous coronary artery dissection, six (13%) with CMD, four (9%) with coronary vasospasm, and four patients (9%) with Takotsubo syndrome. The cause of CI-AMI remained unclear in three patients (6%). No clinically useful predictors of CAD were identified. 91% of patients had values associated with CMD during angiography-based analysis, independently from the etiology of CI-AMI. 49% of cases were treated by revascularization, and the number of MACE was high (16%, 28%, and 34% at 30 days, 1 year, and 2 years).

CI-AMI is a rare, but important cause of acute coronary syndromes (ACS). CAD represents the most frequent etiology of AMI, but there is a broad range of other entities. Patients suffer from a significant number of adverse events.