Interactions and consequences of the combined use of alcohol and cocaine: an update on cocaethylene
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20882/adicciones.439Keywords:
Cocaine, Alcohol, Cocaethylene, Toxicity, AbuseAbstract
Patients who request treatment for cocaine use and alcohol abuse present differences from those who use cocaine only. Ingestion of alcohol as a detonator of craving and the compulsive search behaviour of cocaine leads to a greater loss of control on use, more social problems, more risk and more antisocial behaviours. Hypothesis: the presence of a metabolite known as cocaethylene, resulting from the simultaneous use of alcohol and cocaine could explain the greater toxicity and compulsivity of these episodes. Methodology: A review was made of the scientific literature on the consequences of alcohol-cocaine interaction. Results: The alcohol-cocaine metabolic interaction increases the potential toxicity of both substances taken separately. The cocaethylene acts as a toxic per se. Its presence in the organism provokes a higher potential risk in the simultaneous consumption of alcohol and cocaine. There are more significant concentrations of cocaethylene when alcohol is administered prior to the cocaine. The results of the basic research show that a large part of the differences observed in the action of both substances, when ingested simultaneously, could be a result of modifications in the pharmacokinetics of said drugs and of the potential action of the cocaethylene, which, added to the respective actions of alcohol and cocaine, could be the basis of the increased severity observed in clinical profiles.References
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