Isradipine Enhancement of Cerebral Blood Flow in Abstinent Cocaine Abusers with and Without Chronic Perfusion Deficits

Nine cocaine abusers with cerebral blood flow (CBF) deficits (hypo-perfused areas) on HMPAO SPECT scans were compared to six without these deficits after six doses of isradipine (5 mg TID). When comparing the scan before isradipine to that after using SPM analysis, the ratio of hypo- to hyper-fusion showed a 16% increase in the maximum Z scores and 30% fewer areas of hypo-perfusion among those cocaine abusers with deficits. These deficits may represent segmental cerebral vasospasm that was reversed by this vasodilating agent in cocaine abusers with areas of hypo-perfusion (deficits) as baseline.