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AAPCC Members Warn of Danger of Contaminated Cocaine

Toxicologists across the country are sounding the alarm about levamisole, a contaminant increasingly found in cocaine. DEA estimates some 70% of cocaine currently coming into the country is contaminated with levamisole—a veterinary drug used to de-worm animals. The addition of levamisole is impairing cocaine users’ immune systems, subjecting them to various infections and, in some cases, causing death. Dr. Steven Seifert, a board member for the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC), co-authored a report on the current status of levamisole-contaminated cocaine. Seifert said the public health threat presented by this contamination is underappreciated and is being under-reported because of a lack of awareness in the medical community. Physicians should suspect levamisole-contaminated cocaine in patients with immune suppression, and should contact their county or state health departments for assistance with testing and epidemiologic investigation. Physicians with questions about the impact of levamisole should call their poison center. Doctors should also warn patients known to use cocaine of the presence of a potentially lethal contaminant in cocaine supplies.

Learn more: Cocaine

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