Death from snorting meds

[LilikoiMoon]

Do you believe it is possible that someone who has snorted oxycodone (140+ mg per day) for several years can die as a result of it from a brain aneurysm?

Case and point:

38 year old female friend who had no history of medical issues died in her sleep Nov. 11th from a brain aneurysm. The family told the coroner she was a snorter for 7 years.

M.E. states it is possible the chronic drug use could have caused the aneurysm. Do you believe this? Toxicology/complete autopsy report not back yet.

 

[Rybee]

Why somebody would snort 140mg of Oxy per day is beyond me. The vast majority of that quantity is going to be fillers and binders. Plus, it's not like ingestion is inferior to insufflation when it comes to Oxycodone.

That said, I've not ever heard of opiates causing cerebral aneurysms. Drug related aneurysms are usually attributed to stimulants such as Cocaine and Amphetamines that weaken the blood vessels by putting excess pressure on them.

I think you'd struggle to find a definitive cause in this particular case.

 

[Jktm]

Yes, pills contain very small particles including talc. Build up of these small particles can cause a pulmonary embolism - blood clot in the lungs. Eat your oxy, more makes it to your bloodstream; it just takes a little longer. Any opioid with an additional methyl group in relation to the "Morphine, -morphine, -morphone (-shortened from -morphinone)" group has a very high oral bioavailability.

 

[MyDoorsAreOpen]

There is surprisingly little bone between the inside of the nose and a structure called the cavernous sinus, which contains veins which drain the eye, part of the brain, and the pituitary, an artery leading to the brain (!), and 4 of your cranial nerves. If you snorted a lot of drugs over a long period of time, especially anything both corrosive and insoluble, you just might break through to the cavernous sinus and form a blood clot, which is very bad news.

A blood clot is not the same as an aneurysm, though. An aneurysm is when a blood vessel stretches like a balloon at one point and pops, usually when it has a weak point and blood pressure is dangerously high. If you told me which artery of the brain had the aneurysm, I'd have a lot better idea whether this could have been directly related to snorting drugs.

 

[Jktm]

Sorry for my hasty reply. I didn't read the entire post. Not to say I could have given you an answer as good as the one above, but don't discredit the answer I gave you as that can also cause death/terminal lung problems.

 

[The.Ghost]

If you snorted a lot of drugs over a long period of time, especially anything both corrosive and insoluble, you just might break through to the cavernous sinus and form a blood clot, which is very bad news.

This has me a little worried. Over the last few years I've put quite a bit of zaleplon (water-insoluble) up my nose. I average ~30 mg / day, so ~300 mg of powder from the 10 mg caps. By my count, the total is in the ballpark of a pound of powder (mostly ball-milled to <25 microns), or ~50 g of zaleplon. Is this a cause for concern?

 

[wezface]

It probably doesn't help to be snorting meds, but it's absolutely possible, as anyone could theoretically die from a brain aneurism.