Surgical outcome after femoral vessels ligation in I/V drug users

Abstract

Intravascular drug abuse is being practiced with increasing frequency in our country, resulting in dreadful complications. A common complication of intravenous drug users is traumatic damage to tissues and organs secondary to injections, which depends on a number of factors which are difficult to quantify; local drug practices, the skill of the injector and the susceptibility of the individual. Objective: To study the incidence, limb complications and indications for limb amputation in intravenous drug abusers. Methods: A descriptive study on nineteen intravenous drug abusers was carried out at department of Surgery, Mayo hospital Lahore. Results: Entire limb survived in Eleven patients, Four had toe amputations, Three ended in below knee amputation and One in above knee amputation. Conclusion: Most of the affected limbs can survive despite the major vessels being tied due to development of collateral circulation.