NCJ Number
198582
Date Published
November 2003
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This paper presents an overview of the effects, prevalence, availability, enforcement, and treatment of the stimulant drug cocaine.
Abstract
The stimulant drug cocaine is extracted from the leaves of the coca plant and was first used in the 1880s as a local anesthetic for surgeries. Crack, a freebase form of cocaine, became popular in the 1980s due to its immediate high and inexpensive production cost. Powdered cocaine is typically snorted or dissolved in water and injected. Crack or “rock” is most often smoked. The duration of the drug’s effects depends on how it is ingested. Cocaine produces euphoric effects with the user typically feeling euphoric, energetic, talkative, and mentally alert after taking small amounts of cocaine. Ingesting larger amounts may cause tremors, vertigo, muscle twitches, and paranoia. In 2000, there were an estimated 2,707,000 chronic cocaine users and 3,035,000 occasional users in the United States. Cocaine has been identified as the primary drug threat in the United States according to the National Drug Intelligence Center’s 2003 assessment with its high demand and availability, expanding distribution markets, high rate of associated overdoses, and its relation to violence. For obvious reasons, the enforcement of cocaine use has increased in the areas of arrests, seizures, adjudication, and incarceration. Cocaine can lead to several medical complications, such as cardiovascular effects, respiratory failure, neurological effects, and gastrointestinal complications. There are no available medications to treat cocaine addiction however, treatments such as cognitive-behavioral coping skills have shown to be somewhat effective. Cocaine is a Schedule II drug under the Controlled Substance Act. Cocaine is currently authorized for legitimate medical uses only and administered by a doctor.