Artane high?

[393656]

I personally have never and probaly will never use artane but anecdotally a couple people I have had that come in on artane really want to stay on it and a couple old timer psychiatrists told me the other day that they never saw anyone really get hooked on cogentin or benadryl or hydroxyzine but artane many get "hooked" Is there a unique receptor bindin profile of artane or what is the secret here?

Kind of like seroquel being this magical high with no real good explanation. This months current psychiatry had an article on "everything you need to know about seroquel abuse" when in fact it told you absolutely nothing other than alpha receptors and histamine receptors may be involved. Wow earth shattering article.

just curious

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[firedoor]

Kind of like seroquel being this magical high with no real good explanation. This months current psychiatry had an article on "everything you need to know about seroquel abuse" when in fact it told you absolutely nothing other than alpha receptors and histamine receptors may be involved. Wow earth shattering article.

just curious

I don't know the answer to your question, but I sure as heck wouldn't expect to ever find insightful information in Current Psychiatry.

 

[nitemagi]

I doubt there's uniqueness to it.

My experience in working in the jail system was that anything given will try to be abused. Benadryl can be abused if they take it and force themselves to stay awake. But that's different than a dependence.

 

[kugel]

I don't see as many pts on Artane as I did 20 yrs ago, but still come across a few. Artane does seem to have a little more "buzzworthiness." Used to know a few patients who always seemed to lose their Artane, or have it stolen, 1/2 - 2/3 way through the month. Nowadays, it seems the few I come across are stable on it and there's no apparent abuse. When I have the choice, I use Cogentin. Unless I know the pt is susceptible to EPS, I don't generally prescribe a scheduled EPS med unless I'm using more in a single dose than 5mg Haldol or 3mg Risperdal or 5mg Prolixin (the most common high-potency D2 blockers I use). But I always provide a PRN med for EPS with most any antipsychotic except Seroquel or Zyprexa.

Just my thoughts.

 

[whopper]

There's several published articles of people in third world countries abusing Cogentin. It's actually not surprising when you think of the anticholinergic effects of the medication.

Just some examples:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9359932

http://www.ncjrs.gov/app/abstractdb/AbstractDBDetails.aspx?id=126890

http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/239/22/2365.short

I figure the same will happen with Artane. It doesn't happen much in America because the quality of the high is not as good as most of the meds of abuse on the street. E.g. most people who have abused several substances, anectdotally, say the high from any other illicit substances is usually better. In those specific third world countries, Cogentin is culturally worth it because the locals don't know there's much better out there or can't get their hands on it otherwise.

Why is this of interest? There are those that are too "white collar" to abuse marijuana but will abuse prescription meds. Docs often actively scan for people abusing opioids and benzos but not Cogentin. It's rare but it does happen from time to time.

Also, in prison, prisoners will do anything to get high off of anything. If a naive prison doctor freely gives out Artane or Cogentin, some prisoners will abuse it because the availability of the "better" stuff such as cocaine is minimal.

Charles Scott wrote a book on Correctional Psychiatry and mentions in conferences such as the AAPL conventions that there is a different culture in prisons that most doctors aren't aware of. It's a place where things such as Seroquel and Cogentin are actively abused, and doctors not familiar with this phenomenon have to take notice of it.

 

[Manicsleep]

Why is this of interest? There are those that are too "white collar" to abuse marijuana but will abuse prescription meds. Docs often actively scan for people abusing opioids and benzos but not Cogentin. It's rare but it does happen from time to time.

Its funny that you say marijuana is not white collar. I think its where you live. I've been watching the show 'weeds' on Showtime over the last few years and it has really made me re-evaluate marijuana. I have really been asking more deeply about current, past and occasional use in middle and upper middle class patients. A majority of middle and upper middle class people have used it with the major exception being asians although this is changing with the younger generation males.

There is also a hierarchy that has come to supply this suburban demand. There is a pretty good documentary on it on Netflix (i cant remember the name) but MJ is sold like napa wine to old california hippies out here. Class consciouness has no bounds.

 

[whopper]

I think its where you live.

Very true.

I had a guy who came from the wealthiest section of the community. His father was high up in a big corporation. The guy only abused things he could get from a doctor or supermarket, but nothing from a drug dealer, e.g. Cogentin, cough syrup, Xanax. He wouldn't have anything to do with drug dealers because he as "too good" for them.

Marijuana in several places has penetrated to the point where it's pretty much the norm to use it. The guy I had didn't live in that culture, but it is prevalent in most places.