The Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (JEADV) printed, in its Letters to the Editor section, a case study from the Department of Dermatology, Valencia University General Hospital, in Spain. Pemphigus Vulgaris Associated with Cocaine Snorting. It was reported that a patient was admitted to the hospital with severe erosions on his body and diagnosed with pemphigus vulgaris. The patient was given 90 mg of prednisone and sent home. His disease did not subside so they added 1 gram of CellCept. The patient’s disease did not get better.
After a toxicology report was positive for cocaine, the patient admitted to being addicted to the drug. After management of his addiction began, the patient’s pemphigus rapidly improved. The patient had 2 severe relapses while on 60 mg of prednisone and 1 g daily of CellCept. The PV relapses coincided with his continued use of cocaine.
Because of the sequence of events, the authors concluded that cocaine consumption might have been a factor in the development of disease process. They suggested that physicians should be aware of the possibility of the use of recreational drugs among certain patients, and that because of a lack of coordinated efforts between the disease state and the addiction, these patients are more likely to relapse back into their drug habits and cause the worsening of their disease.
