Crack cocaine
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Definition
Crack cocaine is a highly and rapidly addictive, powerful central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is chemically purified from base cocaine. Crack cocaine is the water-insoluble cocaine base (known as freebase) chemical form of cocaine; it is a hydrochloride powder in pellet form that is created by breaking cocaine crystals and is usually smoked. Crack cocaine is made by a conversion process that involves dissolving the powdered base hydrochloride salt form of cocaine in a mixture of sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) or ammonia and water, then heating the mixture to remove the hydrochloride and leaving a solid smokable substance behind. The solid is removed from the liquid, dried, and then broken into ‘rocks.’ Crack rocks are white or off-white in color and vary in shape and size. Its street name, “rocks” derives from this, and its commonly referred to term, “crack,” is derived from the crackling sound heard when the rock crystals are smoked. When heated, rock crystals produce toxic vapors that can be inhaled or smoked into the lungs where it is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream. Powdered hydrochloride form of cocaine can be snorted, injected, or ingested; intravenous injection directly inserts cocaine into the bloodstream, causing an instant reaction. Smoking crack cocaine produces an immediate euphoric effect as rapid as injection, whereas snorting cocaine produces a slower high in the user. Because of its immediate effects and because it is quick, easy, and inexpensive to produce, crack cocaine became a widely abused drug during the 1980s. Crack cocaine is considered highly dangerous and can quickly lead to tolerance, dependence, addiction, withdrawal, and overdose.
Side Effects and Symptoms
Cocaine, like all CNS stimulants, increases the level of dopamine in the brain when introduced into the bloodstream. The release of dopamine is the brain’s reward system by creating feelings of pleasure for achieving a certain ‘mood’ or brain frequency. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is naturally released by the brain, and then is retrieved by a receiving neuron where the dopamine cycle begins again. The presence of cocaine averts dopamine from reaching the receiving neurons, causing excess amounts of dopamine to build up and therefore disrupts normal transmission. This excess buildup amplifies the feelings of pleasure, known as a state of euphoria or ‘high.’ After repeated cocaine use, this neurological interference can create long-term changes in the brain’s reward system, such as building tolerance to cocaine’s toxic effects. This requires the user to take more frequent or larger amounts of cocaine to achieve the same high. These changes developed from habitual use often lead to addiction. Crack cocaine addiction is both a physical and psychological disorder since the body and brain become dependent on the presence of cocaine.
Crack Cocaine Abuse
- Because smoking or inhaling crack cocaine causes faster absorption of large quantities of the substance into the bloodstream and delivery to the brain, the user will experience an intense, immediate high. Yet this powerful high only lasts an average of 5 to 10 minutes (as opposed to snorting cocaine which produces a high lasting anywhere from 15 to 60 minutes). Therefore, crack cocaine users generally need repeated administration in order to maintain their high. This method, known as binging, may involve the user taking repeated hits during a short period of time or taking gradually larger amounts. All forms of cocaine use can lead to addiction, but crack cocaine use statistically causes addiction symptoms more rapidly.
Crack cocaine abuse causes a variety of adverse effects that include physical, psychological, and behavioral symptoms. The intensity of a user’s side effects depends upon the extent of their abuse, the amounts administered, and their frequency of use. Common effects experienced with cocaine use include reduced fatigue, mental alertness, and increased energy. Cocaine also causes pupil dilation; increased body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure; and constricted blood vessels. Crack cocaine users can experience serious respiratory complications ranging from coughing, shortness of breath, to bleeding in the lungs or other lung trauma. Crack cocaine use also causes several gastrointestinal problems including abdominal pain, nausea, and decreased appetite which leads to malnourishment or anorexia. Behavioral problems develop and can intensify with repeated crack cocaine use, including irritability, anxiety, depression, insomnia, restlessness, aggression, paranoia, and sometimes severe paranoia (known as paranoid psychosis that is similar to schizophrenia) in which the user experiences hallucinations and high fever. Individuals addicted to crack cocaine may display irrational, erratic, or even violent behavior which may cause injury to others or themselves. Cocaine users commonly experience neurological, cardiovascular, and cerebrovascular complications such as headaches, tremors, twitches, or vertigo—some being medical emergencies such as heart arrhythmia, heart attack, strokes, seizures, or coma. Despite their frequency or method of use, cocaine users may absorb large amounts of cocaine that can be highly toxic or lethal, even upon first administration. Cocaine overdose-deaths are commonly the result of cardiac arrest, stroke, or seizure that ends in respiratory arrest. In certain cases, sudden death can occur upon first use or a short time after administration. Regardless of their choice of administration, all cocaine users are equally at high risk of contracting HIV/AIDS through intravenous needle sharing, sharing objects for snorting, or participating in dangerous violent or sexual behaviors that put themselves at risk in order to obtain cocaine.
Statistical Information
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, approximately 5.3 million Americans above the age of 12 had abused any form of cocaine at least once in that past year, with an estimated 1.1 million having abused crack cocaine. The University of Michigan’s 2009 Monitoring the Future survey found that 1.7% of 8th-grade students, 2.1% of 10th-grade students, and 2.4% of 12th-grade students had abused crack cocaine at least once in their lifetime.
Legal Status
All forms of cocaine are illegal. Cocaine is a Schedule II substance under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) due to its potential risk of severe psychological and physical dependence, and because there are no safe methods of administering cocaine other than the few anesthetic uses by medical professionals permitted under the CSA.
Crack Cocaine Addiction Treatment
Like any form of substance addiction, cocaine addiction is a multifaceted disease that causes problems behaviorally, socially, occupationally, biologically, neurologically, and psychologically. Cocaine is highly addictive; repeated use leads to tolerance, dependence, withdrawal after abstinence, and addiction. In 2006, the 71 percent of individuals seeking treatment for cocaine abuse smoke crack and are likely to abuse more than one substance. Currently, there is no medication approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat cocaine addiction, but the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is currently investigating certain medical methods that may interrupt cocaine’s effect before it reaches the brain, and that may suppress cravings for individuals who experience withdrawal. Cognitive-behavioral therapy seems to be most effective in treating cocaine addiction, and the medication disulfiram has been most successful in treating cocaine abuse pharmacologically. Additionally, individuals with drug addictions, like cocaine or crack cocaine addictions, tend to experience comorbid mental disorders. Treatment for crack cocaine must be all-encompassing for these coexisting medical, neurobiological, and mental problems.
References
crack cocaine. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Retrieved April 29, 2010, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/crack cocaine
http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugpages/cocaine.html
http://www.drugabuse.gov/infofacts/cocaine.html
