A massive new study spotlights the toll methamphetamine use may take on heart health, suggesting men, people with kidney disease and those with high blood pressure are especially at risk.
The findings, published Monday in the Journal of the American Heart Association, indicated people who used meth faced a 32% overall increased risk for cardiovascular disease, with especially high risks for heart failure and pulmonary hypertension. The higher risks echoed those associated with alcohol misuse and cocaine use.
“Alcohol and cocaine are established risk factors for cardiovascular disease. What was striking to me was that methamphetamine use is just as risky for the heart,” said Dr. Nisha Parikh, lead study author and an associate professor of clinical medicine at the University of California San Francisco….