Necrotizing cellulitis of the scrotum: a new complication of heroin addiction.

A drug addict experienced a necrotizing cellulitis of his scrotum and medial thigh after an injection of heroin into his left femoral artery. It is proposed that the arterial injection was directly responsible for producing the low tissue oxygen tension necessary for the synergistic growth of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria responsible for skin necrosis. The patient responded to wide surgical debridement and antibiotic therapy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of necrotizing cellulitis associated with the intra-arterial injection of heroin.