Self-Assessment Quiz Question #6 Kiki has been regularly injecting and smoking cocaine while drinking alcohol on the weekends. Which of the following is she at a greater risk of developing if she was pregnant? a. Kidney failure, preeclampsia. b. Respiratory failure, gestational diabetes. c. Abscesses, placenta previa. d. Cardiac toxicity, abruptio placenta.
Evidence-Based Practice Evidence suggests that users who smoke or inject cocaine may be at an even greater risk of causing harm to themselves than those who snort the substance. For example, cocaine smokers also suffer from acute respiratory problems such as cough, shortness of breath, and severe chest pains with lung trauma (NIDA, 2020e). In addition, when combined with alcohol, the individual creates a greater risk for cardiac toxicity than from either drug alone.
Hallucinogens Hallucinogenic substances are characterized by their ability to cause changes in a person’s perception of reality. Persons using hallucinogenic drugs often report seeing images, hearing sounds, and feeling sensations that seem real but do not exist. In the past, natural plants and fungi that contained hallucinogenic substances were used and abused and were primarily used for religious or healing rituals; however, recently people are using them for social or recreational purposes. Currently, these hallucinogenic substances are produced synthetically to provide a higher potency (NIDA, 2019). Hallucinogens are split into two categories: classic hallucinogens, such as LSD, and dissociative drugs, such as PCP. LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is one of the major drugs in the hallucinogen class. It is one of the most powerful mind-altering chemicals. The substance was created in 1938, became popular in the 1960s, and is still commonly used today (NIDA, 2019). The substance is manufactured from lysergic acid, which is found in ergot, a fungus that grows on rye and other grains. LSD is produced in crystalline form. It is then mixed with excipients or is diluted as a liquid for production in ingestible forms. It is odorless and colorless and has a slightly bitter taste. LSD is sold in tablet form (usually small tablets known as microdots ), on sugar cubes, or in thin squares of gelatin (commonly referred to as window panes). Most commonly, however, it is sold as blotter paper, sheets of absorbent paper soaked in or impregnated with LSD, covered with colorful designs or artwork, and perforated into one-quarter inch square individual dosage units (Drugs.com, 2000-2021a). (Box 6) Box 6: LSD: Common Street Names (Sold under more than 80 street names) • Acid • Blotter • Boomers • CID • Golden • Dragon • Looney Tunes • Lucy Mae • Yellow sunshine • Microdots • Tabs Note. NIDA, 2020f. The effects of LSD are unpredictable. Usually, the first effects of the drug are felt 20 to 90 minutes after taking it. A wide variety of physical and behavioral effects may result (Drugs.com, 2000- 2021a; NIDA 2020f). (Box 7) LSD produces tolerance, so some who use the drug repeatedly must take progressively higher doses to achieve the state of intoxication that they had previously achieved. This is an extremely dangerous practice given the unpredictability of the drug (Drugs.com, 2000-2021a).
Box 7: LSD Abuse: Clinical Signs Short-Term
Long-Term
• Rapid mood swings from
• Dilated pupils • Hyperthermia • Sweating • Nausea • Loss of appetite • Tremors • Perception of hearing colors and seeing sounds • Increased blood sugar
• Frightening flashbacks • Ongoing visual disturbances • Disorganized thinking • Panic feeling • Paranoia • Mood swings • Fear of insanity and death
one emotion to another • Distortion of ability to think rationally • Visual hallucinations • Hypertension • Tachycardia • Dry mouth
• Insomnia • Dizziness • Insomnia
Note. Drugs.com, 2000-2021a; NIDA, 2020f. Phencyclidine Phencyclidine (PCP) was developed in the 1950s as an intravenous anesthetic. Its use in humans was discontinued in 1965 because patients often became agitated, delusional, and irrational as they recovered from its anesthetic effects. PCP is now illegally manufactured in laboratories (Drugs.com, 2000- 2021b; NIDA, 2020g). In its pure form, it is a white crystalline powder that is readily soluble in water or alcohol. It has a distinctive bitter chemical taste. PCP can be easily mixed with dyes and turns up on the illicit drug market in a variety of tablets, capsules, and colored powders. These are taken either orally or by insufflation (snorted). It can be snorted, smoked, injected, or ingested. For smoking, PCP is often applied to a leafy material such as mint, parsley, oregano, or marijuana (Drugs.com, 2000-2021b). Although it is a white crystalline powder in its pure form, on the illicit drug market it can contain a number of contaminants. This causes the color to range from a light to darker brown, and its consistency can range from a powdery substance to a gummy mass. The liquid form of PCP is actually PCP base dissolved most often in ether, a highly flammable solvent. (Box 8) Box 8: PCP: Common Street Names • Angel dust • Embalming fluid • Hog • Rocket fuel • Sherms • Boat • Tic tac • Zoom (mixed with marijuana) Note. Drugs.com, 2001-2021b; NIDA, 2020g.
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Book Code: RPTTX2024
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