• Walter de Millas, Christian Haasen, Jens Reimer, Francisco Jose Eiroa-Orosa, and Ingo Schaefer.
• Center for Interdisciplinary Addiction Research, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
• Eur J Emerg Med. 2010 Feb 1; 17 (1): 33-6.

AbstractIllicit drug use can lead to acute reverse reactions leading to the admission to emergency departments. Cocaine-related emergencies have been monitored in the USA, but not in Europe so far. The study investigates patterns of cocaine emergencies in eight European cities in a multicentre cross-sectional study conducted in Barcelona, Budapest, Dublin, Hamburg, London, Rome, Vienna and Zurich. The reported frequency differs from city to city, with some emergency centres having less than one case per half year, and some centres having more than one case per month. Patterns of complaints among cocaine users are associated with the psychomotor-stimulant or cardiovascular effects of cocaine. Urine screens and referrals to the addiction services are infrequent. A closer link between the emergency departments and addiction services would help in guiding problematic drug users towards appropriate treatment at an earlier stage in the addiction process.

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