Are there any FDA approved medications for the treatment of cocaine dependence?
Currently, there are no medications that are FDA approved for the treatment of cocaine dependence. However, recent advances in the understanding of the processes involved in cocaine addiction have allowed researchers to identify several promising new candidate medications.
Was a cocaine nasal spray approved by the FDA in 2020?
In January 2020, the Food and Drug Administration approved a nasal spray containing cocaine. In January 2020, readers asked us about the accuracy of a story that claimed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had approved a new cocaine nasal spray for use as a local anesthetic.
Is cocaine a controlled substance?
Cocaine in Medicine and the FDA Cocaine is a Schedule II controlled substance, a drug with medical value which poses serious risks for abuse and addiction, according to the federal government. Although it is illegal as a recreational drug, cocaine is legal as an ingredient in legitimate medications.
What are the treatment options for cocaine addiction?
X While there are no FDA-approved medications to treat cocaine addiction, there are treatment options available including inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation programs, support groups, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Cocaine is a highly addictive stimulant.
Who can help you overcome addiction?
After you admit you have a problem and want to overcome your addiction, seeking professional help from a doctor, licensed psychologist, psychiatrist, mental health worker, or counselor is a major step on the road to recovery. They will be able to assess your situation and potentially suggest other treatment ...
Is cocaine a stimulant?
Cocaine is a highly addictive stimulant. Cocaine addiction, also referred to as cocaine use disorder, is a compulsive use of the drug regardless of potential physical, emotional, financial, or even criminal consequences.
Is there a drug for cocaine addiction?
While there are no FDA-approved medications to treat cocaine addiction, there are treatment options available including inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation programs, support groups, and cognitive behavioral therapy.
What is the most difficult phase of cocaine treatment?
After patients have attained a period of abstinence, then the more difficult phase of treatment begins: relapse prevention. Examples of pharmacological strategies for cocaine relapse prevention include blocking cocaine-induced euphoria or reducing cocaine craving. New insights into the effects of cocaine on the brain reward system have resulted in several promising relapse prevention medications.
What is the best drug for cocaine withdrawal?
Propranolol. The beta-blocker, propranolol, appears to be promising for the treatment of patients who present for treatment with severe cocaine withdrawal symptoms. Beta blockers are primarily used to treat angina and hypertension, though they are often used to control anxiety and agitation.11,12During cocaine withdrawal, patients are sensitive to the effects of adrenalin and noradrenalin, and this may contribute to the anxiety and restlessness they feel.13As a beta-blocker, propranolol may be able to reduce the anxiety associated with cocaine withdrawal as well as reduce some of the more uncomfortable symptoms of cocaine craving. Beta-blockers may also be able to reduce some of the rewarding properties of cocaine. In a human laboratory trial, the beta blocker carvedilol reduced cocaine self-administration in nontreatment-seeking, cocaine-dependent subjects.14
What is the drug used to treat alcohol addiction?
Disulfiram. Disulfiram is a promising cocaine relapse prevention medication. Disulfiram is an established medicine used for the treatment of alcohol dependence. It causes a characteristic unpleasant reaction when alcohol is ingested due to blockade of the enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase and the subsequent build-up of acetaldehyde.
What is the best drug for narcolepsy?
Modafinil. Modafinil is a medication approved for the treatment of narcolepsy. It enhances glutamate-neurotransmission.44Modafinil may be efficacious for cocaine dependence by ameliorating glutamate depletion seen in chronic cocaine users.45Improved baseline glutamatergic tone in the nucleus accumbens prevents reinstatement of cocaine self-administration in an animal model of relapse.46In addition, modafinil was found to block the euphoric effects of cocaine in two independent human laboratory studies.47,48Thus, modafinil may be effective for relapse prevention due several mechanisms of action.
What is the role of dopamine in cocaine?
The mesocortical dopamine system plays a central role in the reinforcing effects of cocaine. 18–21Mesocortical dopaminergic neurons receive modulatory inputs from both GABergic and glutaminergic neurons. GABA is primarily an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, and activation of GABAergic neurons tends to decrease activation in the dopaminergic reward system. Preclinical trials of medications that foster GABAergic neurotransmission have suggested that these compounds reduce the dopamine response to both cocaine administration and to conditioned reminders of prior cocaine use.22–24GABAergic medications also reduce the self-administration of cocaine in animal models.25,26So, GABAergic medications could prevent relapse either by blocking cocaine-induced euphoria or by reducing craving caused by exposure to conditioned reminders of prior cocaine use.
What are the withdrawal symptoms of cocaine?
Cocaine withdrawal symptoms include dysphoric mood, fatigue, sleep disturbance, appetite changes, and irritability. In several studies, it has been demonstrated that patients who enter treatment with severe cocaine withdrawal symptoms are more likely to drop out of treatment prematurely and are less likely to attain abstinence from cocaine in outpatient treatment programs.2,5–7Poor treatment outcomes may be due to the fact that cocaine-dependent patients who have cocaine withdrawal symptoms experience cocaine differently. Several investigators have noted that cocaine-dependent patients who experience cocaine withdrawal symptoms report a greater high from experimentally administered cocaine.8–10The increased euphoria experienced by patients with cocaine withdrawal syndrome may make it more difficult for them to give up cocaine.
Is topiramate good for relapse prevention?
Topiramate. Topiramate may be an excellent medication for relapse prevention based on its effects on both GABA neurotransmission and glutamate neurotransmission. Topiramate increases cerebral levels of GABA and facilitates GABA neurotransmission.32,33Topiramate also inhibits glutamate neurotransmission through a blockade of AMPA/kainate receptors.34In animal models of cocaine relapse, blockade of AMPA receptors in the nucleus accumbens prevented reinstatement of cocaine self-administration.35