Question: I live alone with my 34-year-old son, who started drinking a lot and using cocaine 10 years ago. This drug wreaks havoc on his life because he lost jobs, partners, friends. 3 months ago he almost died. What can be done? Is there anything new? (MJA, from CABA.)
The coca leaf had traditional uses in the cultures of the Andes given that it has analgesic, energetic and hunger and thirst suppressing properties, which is why the inhabitants of the area have chewed it or used it in infusions for 1,200 years.
It is worth specifying that The leaves only contain 1% cocaine and was first chemically isolated in 1859. by the German Albert Niemann analyzing the plant Erythroxylum coca and whose research was his doctoral thesis.
The discovery marked the beginning of scientific interest in this alkaloid that It was used in medical applications and as a local anesthetic.
Some wines and tonics gained popularity in Europe because they contained it, while In the US, Coca-Cola incorporated it into its formula until 1903. In 1914, cocaine became illegal in that country as its initial recreational and stimulant consumption turned towards clearly addictive patterns.
Patients addicted to cocaine they run the risk of dyingsuffer medical complications, lose work or have family problems due to their consumption.
Loss of control is the hallmark of addiction and an essential problem in its treatment is that generates a euphoria so intense that it is far from normal human experience.
The progression to serious dependence or cocaine addiction happens very quicklyand even more so if crack is used (the result of cooking cocaine and baking soda until it solidifies and produces crystals or “rocks”).
The latter is more powerful and toxic since it is smoked and the pulmonary route is the fastest to deliver cocaine to the brain.
The damage it causes
But the damage to health not only involves the brain, but causes serious cardiovascular disorders (cocaine accumulates in the heart), lung lesions, psychiatric disorders and a deterioration in quality of life.
The treatment of cocaine addiction is complex and requires a combination of medical, psychological and social interventions.
Seizure of 134 kilos of cocaine that they were trying to transport in an ambulance, in Salta. / Clarín ArchiveTo the most used medications such as modafinil (demonstrated effectiveness in reducing the desire to consume), bupropion (reduces depression and withdrawal anxiety), naltrexone (in severe overdose), topiramate (regulates brain circuits involved in reward)
and some atypical antipsychotics (stabilize mood and reduce relapses), various Ongoing research highlights potential for new therapies for cocaine addiction such as treatment with psilocybin, the use of monoclonal antibodies or dopamine transporter inhibitors.
Recently, Brazilian scientists announced an innovative vaccine to treat cocaine and crack addictionwhich generates the binding of antibodies to the drug, blocking its entry into the brain.
If this project from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (Brazil) were to obtain regulatory approval, It would be the first time that cocaine addiction could be treated with a vaccine.
However, Marica Ferri of the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction says: “Cocaine is not an isolated problem and people stopping using it does not solve all the problems. Physical damage has to be healed, as does mental health. Therapy also involves working on the psyche and the social environment.”
