This chapter provides an overview of nationwide trends in the illegal traffic of methamphetamine, methcathinone, cannabis, and crack cocaine. Methamphetamine and methcathinone, both powerful stimulants, are manufactured in clandestine laboratories located primarily in the western and midwestern United States, respectively. Marijuana is grown both outdoors, in small, widely scattered plots, and ...

Crack-cocaine offers a higher risk of abuse than intranasal and intravenous use cocaine. Yet, current treatments remain disappointing our understanding the mechanism crack-cocaine neurotoxicity is still incomplete. Magnetic resonance images studies on brain changes addicts show divergent data. The present study investigated gray matter (GM) abnormalities in dependents (n = 18) compared to healt...

Chronic abuse of cocaine or alcohol is associated with structural, neuropathological and cognitive impairments that have been documented extensively. Little is known, however, about neurobiochemical changes in chronic substance abusers.We performed MRI and multi-slice brain proton magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) to assess neuronal viability (via N-acetylaspartate (NAA)) and whit...

OBJECTIVE The occurrence of psychiatric comorbidity among individuals with crack or inhalant dependence is frequently observed. The objective of this study was to investigate anxiety symptoms among crack cocaine and inhalant users in southern Brazil. METHODS The study investigated two groups of volunteers of equal size (n=50): one group consisted of crack cocaine users, and the other group co...

The use of phenytoin (PHT) as a cocaine adulterant was reported decades ago; that practice is still current. Ironically PHT has also been used for the treatment of cocaine dependence. A drug smuggler developed PHT toxicity after swallowing several rocks of crack. We investigated the current trends of PHT as a cocaine adulterant and its toxicological implications. We also reviewed the clinical u...

BACKGROUND Neurotrophic factors have been investigated in the pathophysiology of alcohol and drug dependence and have been related to early life stress driving developmental programming of neuroendocrine systems. METHODS We conducted a follow-up study that aimed to assess the plasma levels of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), nerve g...

This article aims to systematize the profile of cocaine and crack users in Brazil. The study adopted a literature review of the MEDLINE, LILACS, Cochrane Library databases and CAPES thesis/dissertation database. Data were grouped in thematic categories: national household surveys, surveys of specific population groups, profile of patients that seek treatment, and mortality and morbidity. Within...

Compared to the users of other illicit drugs, mortality rates among crack cocaine users have been found to be conspicuously high. Several factors contribute to this pattern. This article argues that one of the primary factors involved in drug-related deaths among crack cocaine users is the role this drug plays in fostering infectious disease syndemics, including adverse interactions among HIV, ...

OBJECTIVE To establish a progression on drug use and its intervening factors among crack users. METHODS A qualitative methodology was applied for an in-depth investigation, taking into consideration the interviewees' viewpoint of the problem. Long interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire were conducted. A purposeful sampling was outlined to create a criterion sampling. For theoretical...

Pneumomediastinum is termed spontaneous when not associated with traumatic injury or other recognizable pathological process. Occurrence of the malady following cocaine abuse has rarely been reported. We herein describe a 22-year-old male whowas a chronic user of large quantities of cocaine. Pneumomediastinum developed after smoking crack cocaine, and was diagnosed by chest radiograph and compu...