Sino-nasal bony and cartilaginous destruction associated with cocaine abuse, <i>S. aureus</i> and antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies

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Abstract

Three male patients aged 29, 30 and 34 years and a 36-year-old female are reported with nasal septum perforation and a history of cocaine abuse. Two of the patients also had a perforation of the hard palate. In all four, antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA) were found. One had a cytoplasmic immunof luorescence-staining pattern (c-ANCA), the other three showed a perinuclear staining pattern (p-ANCA). Furthermore, all patients were found to be nasal carriers of <i>S. aureus</i>. We hypothesise that tissue damage to the nasal and palatal area in patients using cocaine may partly be mediated by the presence of ANCA antibodies.
Furthermore, we speculate that <i>S. aureus</i> facilitates the development of these ANCA antibodies.