Acute extensive myelopathy after single heroin and cocaine exposure in a patient with toxicological evidence of long-term drug abstinence.

ABSTRACT

Heroin-related myelopathy is an uncommon but often devastating complication of heroin intake. It is usually reported in individuals exposed to intravenous heroin after a variable drug-free period, leading to acute and complete spinal cord injury with poor long-term outcome. We describe an original case of acute longitudinally extensive transverse myelopathy following single heroin and cocaine intravenous exposure after a long period of abstinence confirmed by toxicological hair and retrospective urine drug analysis. This case could provide new insights in the understanding of this rare neurological complication.