Stimulant drugs: characteristics and effects of their use.

A summary of the types and characteristics of the main stimulant drugs.

Drugs are addictive substances that can generate a great dependency in the person who consumes them.

In this article we will give a brief description of what drugs are, and then go into how one type of drug works: stimulant drugs. Specifically, we will talk about the two stimulant drugs, we will talk about the two most frequent stimulant drugscocaine and amphetamines. We will analyze their most outstanding characteristics, their mechanism of action, the disorders associated with them and what effects they produce in our organism.

What are drugs?

Drugs are substances that, when introduced into the organism, act on the central nervous system (CNS), altering or (CNS), altering or modifying its functioning.

These are substances that can easily cause different psychological alterations, such as consumption disorder (where the consumption of the drug is excessive, interfering with the person's usual functioning) and two types of disorders induced by the substance itself; intoxication and withdrawal (abstinence syndrome).

But... what types of drugs are there? In the DSM-5 (Diagnostic Manual of Mental Disorders), we find the following classification of drugs:

• Alcohol
• Caffeine
• Hallucinogens (phencyclidine and others)
• Caffeine
• Cannabis
• Inhalants
• Opiates
• Sedatives/hypnotics/anxiolytics
• Stimulants (cocaine, amphetamines and others)
• Tobacco
• Other substances

In other words, according to the manual, we find up to 10 different types of drugs, depending on their characteristics and effects.

As we can see, within the stimulant drugs we find: cocaine, amphetamines and others. That is why in this article we will talk about cocaine and amphetamines, as they are the most common stimulant drugs.

Stimulant drugs

Stimulant drugs are a type of drug that, as their name suggests, stimulate the activity of the central nervous system, stimulate the activity of the central nervous system (CNS); that is, they are excitatory drugs that intensify brain activity.

On the other hand, among the effects of stimulant drugs we find a greater sharpness of mind, as well as an increase in energy and attention, together with an increase in Blood Pressure and in the speed of respiration, and and increased breathing and heart rate.

As for their mechanism of action, stimulant drugs increase the levels of three types of brain neurotransmitters: dopamine, serotonin and noradrenaline (all monoamines).

Now, let's talk about the stimulant drugs mentioned above:

1. Cocaine

Cocaine is one of the existing stimulant drugs. It is a drug that excites or stimulates the central nervous system (CNS), through a mechanism of action that consists of increasing the levels of dopamine, serotonin and noradrenaline in the brain. a mechanism of action that consists of increasing the levels of dopamine, serotonin and noradrenaline in the brain.. Specifically, what cocaine does is to block the neuronal reuptake of these three brain neurotransmitters.

This drug produces a series of important psychological and behavioral changes, which manifest themselves in three phases: the high phase (with symptoms such as euphoria, overflowing energy, etc.), the low phase (depressive symptoms) and the hangover phase.

1.1. Route of use

Cocaine can be consumed in different ways, i.e. it can be consumed in different ways. The most common are: intravenous, smoked or snorted.. In the first two cases, its progression through the body is more rapid; in the third case (snorted), its progression is more gradual.

1.2. Consumption pattern

The consumption pattern associated with cocaine logically varies from one person to another. The episodic pattern involves a separate use of cocaine, lasting two or more days, with "binges" in between. The daily pattern, on the other hand, implies a progressive increase in the consumption of the substance.

Prevalence

According to the DSM-5, about 0.3% of subjects over the age of 18 years have a cocaine use disorder, with the age range of 0.3% of subjects over the age of 18 years having a cocaine use disorder.The age range with the highest consumption is 18-29 years of age. On the other hand, a higher consumption of this stimulant drug is observed in men (0.4%) compared to women (0.1%).

1.4. Cocaine withdrawal syndrome

Withdrawal syndromes associated with different stimulant drugs produce a series of symptoms that can cause great discomfort in the sufferer. In the case of cocaine (being a stimulant drug), the symptoms that appear in such a syndrome are the opposite: that is, essentially depressive symptoms will appear.

Specifically, in cocaine withdrawal syndrome, a three-phase pattern occurs, consisting of three phases.consisting of three phases. In the first phase (crash phase), acute dysphoria appears, with a descent into a depressive mood, together with anxiety. Other associated symptoms also appear, such as: agitation, fatigue, exhaustion, hypersomnolence, anorexia, etc.

In the second phase abstinence itself occurs, with the reduction of the previous dysphoric symptoms.. In this phase, subjects respond with more abstinence to conditioned environmental stimuli (such as places where the subject usually consumes the drug).

Finally, in the third and last phase of cocaine withdrawal syndrome, a state of excitation is produced in the subject.Its duration is indefinite, and an intermittent irresistible desire appears, associated to multiple conditioned stimuli, such as: moods, places, people, white powder, mirrors, etc.

2. Amphetamines

Another of the stimulant drugs we can find are amphetamines. Amphetamines, like cocaine, are compounds with reinforcing and stimulating effects, are compounds with reinforcing and stimulating effects for the brain and the organism..

Along with cocaine and other substances, amphetamines are included in the DSM-5 in the group of stimulant drugs. For its part, the ICD-10 (International Classification of Diseases) includes them in the group of "other stimulants", together with caffeine.

As for their mechanism of action amphetamines act mainly by inducing the release of monoamines (i.e., serotonin). (i.e. serotonin, noradrenaline and dopamine, three types of brain neurotransmitters). In other words, just like cocaine, amphetamines act on these same three neurotransmitters, albeit in different ways.

Compared to cocaine, these stimulant drugs produce a longer lasting effect in the organism, and that is why a lower frequency of administration is needed.

Prevalence

The prevalence of amphetamine use disorder is slightly lower than in the case of cocaine, according to the DSM-5, about 0.2% in subjects over 18 years of age..

In addition, subjects with a diagnosis of amphetamine use disorder are mainly in the 18-29 years age group (0.4%), with use being more prevalent among males (vs. females).

2.2. Associated disorders

As is the case with the other stimulant drug, cocaine, amphetamines can lead to various disorders.. There are two main groups of disorders: disorders induced by the consumption of the substance (consumption disorder) and disorders induced by the substance itself (intoxication and withdrawal).

Thus, amphetamines (and/or their consumption) can produce all of these disorders.

Bibliographical references:

• American Psychiatric Association -APA- (2014). DSM-5. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. Madrid: Panamericana.
• WHO (2000). ICD-10. International classification of diseases, tenth edition. Madrid. Panamericana.
• Stahl, S.M. (2002). Essential psychopharmacology. Neuroscientific bases and clinical applications. Barcelona: Ariel.