PRELIMINARY-RESULTS OF AN INTERDISCIPLINARY SURVEY OF DRUG VICTIMS

In an interdisciplinary study, 53 cases of drug-related death were inv estigated. Forty per cent of these cases exhibited acute or chronic he patitis; foreign body granulomas were detected in 30%. By CT-scan of t he left lung, small abscesses and pneumonic focuses could be localized . The spectrum of bacterial strains isolated from lung tissue did not differ significantly from that of a control group. Severe alterations of the testes, i.e. reduction of spermatogenesis, was present in a con siderable number of cases. The high rate of myocarditis diagnosed (18% ) supports the idea that besides acute intoxication, drug-related deat h is due to multifactorial origin.