Crack cocaine - A two-year follow-up of treated patients

Objectives: To investigate the 2-year outcome of the first 131 crack cocaine users who had been admitted for a period of inpatient treatment. Design: Follow-up study of consecutive patients admitted between 1992 and 1994. Setting: Inpatient detoxification unit of a public general hospital in Sao Paulo City, Brazil. Participants: 131 consecutive crack cocaine users. Measures: Reported crack use during last 12 months, incarceration and death. Findings: After 2 years, 50 patients reported crack use in the last 12 months, 29 said that they had not used it during this period, 9 were in prison, 13 had died, 2 had disappeared and no information was available on 28. Conclusions: Crack cocaine use seems to be associated with a high mortality rate and criminal involvement but about one-third of patients give up using the drug within 2 years of inpatient treatment.