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These brain tests show the scary reality of taking too much cocaine.
The images show how clbad A medicine can "gnaw" your brain, leaving you with a disability – and at worst, death.
Rare but deadly side effect
Taking this medication is a rare but serious side effect, doctors warned after treating a man taken to hospital by his parents in Msida, Malta. The sun reports.
Aged 45, he was confused and behaved strangely before the doctors realized that he was suffering from toxic leukoencephalopathy induced by cocaine.
Dr. Ylenia Abdilla, who looked after the unnamed man, explained: "It's a rare disorder that can cause significant disability."
Sharing the medical case report, she added, "This case study aims to raise awareness about this disease.
"The prognosis is generally poor and can be quickly fatal, but a few rare cases recover completely, as shown in this case report."
MAN RUSHED HAS A & E BY PARENTS
Dr. Abdilla and his colleagues from Mater Dei Hospital in Malta cared for the man two to three days after the last cocaine was taken.
The regular 45-year-old coke consumer was rushed into A & E by his parents after two days of confusion.
The MRI exams of a regular cocaine consumer reveal the damage that the drug can cause over time. Image: BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2019
The doctors noted that his pupils were dilated and "reacted strongly to the light" and that the patient "was not cooperative, unable to perform simple tasks and did not follow orders".
Dr. Abdilla's team sent his patient for an MRI on his brain.
They revealed white matter lesions of the brain and doctors diagnosed him with a toxic leukoencephalopathy of cocaine origin, a rare condition.
Often fatal
Dr. Abdilla said, "It can be different in different ways.
"These include altered levels of consciousness, confusion, impaired language, impaired vision, fever or spasticity.
"The prognosis is bad – the condition is progressing rapidly and often leads to death.
"Rarely, it has been reported that this entails a complete recovery, as in our case."
The doctors treated the man, giving him steroids, a plasma exchange and antibodies.
He was transferred to a rehab center where he showed signs of improvement.
After four months, he walked independently and dealt with most aspects of daily life.
The patient was treated for anxiety and managed not to take medication, which means that he was allowed to return home a month later.
One year after admission to the hospital, the man returned for follow-up.
He had not used drugs for a year, and while his brain scan still showed "persistent white matter changes," the neurological tests were normal.
The team of Dr. Abdilla noted: "In addition to a few complaints of bad mood, he was totally independent and had regained its former functional status."
According to the Drug Addictions Trends Report released by the National Drug and Alcohol Research Center (NDARC) for 2018, Australians consume a record amount of cocaine.
The researchers found that nearly 60% of respondents (59%) reported having used cocaine in the last six months, compared with 48% in the last phase of interviews in 2017.
This is the highest level ever since the beginning of the annual drug trends reports in 2003.
This article was originally published on The Sun and has been reproduced with permission.
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