Cocaine dependence
drug dependence that is a psychological dependency on the regular use of cocaine
Cocaine dependence is a neurological disorder characterized by withdrawal symptoms upon cessation of cocaine use. It often occurs alongside cocaine addiction, a biopsychosocial disorder characterized by persistent use of cocaine despite substantial harm. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5) classifies problematic cocaine use as a stimulant use disorder. The 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) includes "Cocaine dependence" as a classification (diagnosis) under "Disorders due to use of cocaine".
Cocaine use generally induces feelings of euphoria and increased energy. Adverse effects include mood swings, paranoia, insomnia, psychosis, high blood pressure, tachycardia, panic attacks, seizures that are extremely difficult to control, cognitive impairments, and drastic changes in personality. Overdoses can cause cardiovascular and brain damage, such as vasoconstriction in the brain, potentially resulting in a stroke; constricted arteries in the heart, potentially causing heart attacks; and status epilepticus.
Symptoms of cocaine withdrawal range from moderate to severe and include dysphoria, depression, anxiety, decreased libido, weakness, pain, and cravings for cocaine.
Signs and symptoms
Cocaine is a powerful stimulant known to make users feel energetic, cheerful, talkative, etc. In time, negative side effects include increased body temperature, irregular or rapid heart rate, high blood pressure, increased risk of heart attacks, strokes and even sudden death from cardiac arrest.
The public source identifies “Cocaine dependence” as drug dependence that is a psychological dependency on the regular use of cocaine. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Cocaine, dependence and drug.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 5, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3743188. The Library of Congress control number is sh85027560. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “Cocaine dependence” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.