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Methamphetamine-Associated Congestive Heart Failure: Increasing Prevalence and Relationship of Clinical Outcomes to Continued Use or Abstinence

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of methamphetamine-associated congestive heart failure (MAC) and to evaluate the relationship between methamphetamine abuse and EF and functional status over time. A retrospective review of records from 2009 to 2014 was carried out. Prevalence of methamphetamine abuse among all patients admitted with CHF was calculated for each of the 6 years of the study (n = 141) and was compared with prevalence of cocaine abuse and alcohol abuse. For patients with two or more admissions during the entire time period, the trajectories of NYHA functional class and EF over time were determined (n = 58). MAC has significantly increased from 1.8 to 5.6 % of total CHF patients admitted (n = 3705). Among patients who stopped using methamphetamine, NYHA functional class significantly improved, while among patients who continued methamphetamine use, NYHA was significantly worsened (p < 0.001). Significantly more patients with improved EF stopped using methamphetamine than continued (p = 0.05). There was a significant increase in the prevalence of MAC during the study period for all CHF patients admitted in our hospital system. Continued methamphetamine use is associated with worsening functional status, while cessation of methamphetamine is associated with improvement in functional status.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to give a special thanks to the Scripps Mercy Medical Library staff for their assistance with literature review. We would also like to thank Dr. Bruce Kimura for his assistance in reviewing the manuscript and Ashley Jaravata for assistance in searching the database.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Graduate Medical Education, Scripps Mercy Hospital, 4077 Fifth Avenue, MER-35, San Diego, CA, 92103, USA

    Sean Sliman & David Shaw

  2. Department of Molecular and Experimental Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA

    Jill Waalen

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  1. Sean Sliman
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Correspondence to David Shaw.

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Sliman, S., Waalen, J. & Shaw, D. Methamphetamine-Associated Congestive Heart Failure: Increasing Prevalence and Relationship of Clinical Outcomes to Continued Use or Abstinence. Cardiovasc Toxicol 16, 381–389 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12012-015-9350-y

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