Effects of cocaine and/or heroin use on resting cardiovascular function.

Background: Regular cocaine and/or heroin use is associated with major health risks, especially cardiovascular disease, but confounded by other factors. We examined effects of chronic (years regular use) and recent (past-month) cocaine and heroin use, controlling for other factors, on resting cardiovascular function.

Methods: In a sample of 292 cocaine and/or heroin users, we assessed demographics, body mass index (BMI), substance use history, electrocardiogram, heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP).