HRB Factsheet January 2017 – Cocaine: the Irish situation

Factsheet – Cocaine: the Irish situation

January 2017


What is cocaine?

Cocaine is a colourless substance obtained from the leaves of certain types of coca plant. There are basically two chemical forms of cocaine:

  • Cocaine powder is a white crystalline powder (hydrochloride salt) and is the most commonly used form. Drug dealers often dilute cocaine powder with other substances, such as talcum powder or sugar (lactose), or local anaesthetic (lignocaine). It is usually inhaled through a thin straw, or dissolved in water and injected.
  • Crack cocaine is an off-white solid substance made by dissolving cocaine powder in a mixture of water and baking soda; this mixture is boiled, dried and broken into rock-like chunks. It can be smoked, or dissolved in an acidic liquid and injected.

What does cocaine do?

The effects of cocaine occur very rapidly and include raised blood pressure, increased body temperature, stimulation, reduction in hunger and thirst, dilation of pupils and feelings of great energy and alertness. Repeated sniffing of cocaine powder irritates the nose and can cause a breakdown of nasal cartilage.

How do we know how many people use cocaine in Ireland?

Every four years the National Advisory Committee on Drugs and Alcohol (NACDA) and the Northern Ireland Public Health Information and Research Branch (PHIRB) commission a survey of the general population to estimate the number of people in Ireland who use drugs and alcohol. Face-to- face interviews take place with respondents aged 15+ normally resident in households in Ireland and Northern Ireland. This type of survey is not designed to include people who do not normally live in private households (such as prisoners or hostel dwellers).

How many people use cocaine in Ireland?

The 2014/15 survey involved 9,505 people (7,005 in Ireland and 2,500 in Northern Ireland). The results for Ireland showed that:

  • Lifetime usage of cocaine (including crack) and cocaine powder at 6.6% and 6.4% respectively.
  • The percentage of respondents aged 15-64 years who reported using cocaine (including crack) at some point in their lives increased from 7% to 8%.
  • The proportion of young adults (15-34) who reported using cocaine in their lifetimes has also increased from 9% to 11%.
  • Similar to the previous studies, more men reported using cocaine in their lifetimes compared to women (11% vs. 5%).

The latest survey estimates show a rise in the percentage of cocaine users in the general population aged 15-64:

Table 1: Lifetime, last year and last month prevalence of cocaine use in the general populationIt is estimated that about 17.1 million Europeans (5.1% of the population aged 15–64 years) have used cocaine at least once in their life. In the last year it is estimated that 3.6 million (1.1%) of adults (15–64) and 2.4 million (1.9%) of young adults (15–34) used cocaine.

How many people receive treatment for cocaine use?

The National Drug Treatment Reporting System (NDTRS) provides data on treated drug and alcohol misuse in Ireland.b The number of cases entering drug treatment who reported cocaine as their main problem drug increased from 482 in 2005 to 743 in 2014.4

Of the 743 cases who reported cocaine as their main problem drug:

  • 369 (49%) were new cases.
  • 421 (56%) lived in Dublin.
  • 595 (80%) were men.
  • 17 (2%) were aged under 18 years; 459 (61%) were aged 18–34; 175 (23%) were aged 35–44; and 29 (3.9%) were aged 45–64.
  • 522 (70%) used cocaine with other drugs.
  • 110 (14%) used cocaine daily, 300 (40%) used it between two and six times per week, 104 (14%) used it once per week or less, and 193 (26%) had not used it in the last month.
  • 584 (78%) sniffed or snorted cocaine, 116 (15%) smoked it, 14 (2%) ate or drank it, and 10 (1.3%) injected it.

How many people die from using cocaine?

The National Drug-Related Deaths Index (NDRDI) is a database of cases of death by drug and alcohol poisoning, and deaths among drug users and people who are alcohol dependent. Cocaine-related deaths increased by 25% from 32 in 2013 to 40 in 2014. Almost all deaths (98%) where cocaine was implicated involved other drugs. Cannabis and cocaine were the most common drugs used by those who died as a result of hanging.

Non-fatal overdoses and drug-related emergencies

According to the Hospital In-Patient Enquiry (HIPE) scheme there were 4,233 cases of non-fatal overdose discharged from Irish hospitals in 2013. Narcotic or hallucinogenic drugs were involved in 587 (14%) of these cases. Cocaine is included in this drug category and was present in 60 (10%) of cases.

Non-fatal overdoses and drug-related emergencies

According to the Hospital In-Patient Enquiry (HIPE) scheme there were 4,233 cases of non-fatal overdose discharged from Irish hospitals in 2013. Narcotic or hallucinogenic drugs were involved in 587 (14%) of these cases. Cocaine is included in this drug category and was present in 60 (10%) of cases.

What does the law say about cocaine?

Cocaine is on the list of drugs that are controlled by law. A person found in possession of cocaine powder or crack cocaine is guilty of an offence. You can find more information about Irish drug laws, offences and penalties on the Citizens Information Board website.

Seizures of cocaine

There has been a significant decline in the number of seizures of cocaine made by Garda and Revenue Customs officers since 2007, when the total was 1,749. There were 366 cocaine seizures in in 2013 and 405 in 2014. In 2015 just under 109 Kgs of cocaine was seized.

For more information on cocaine, please refer to the following sources:

  1. The independent health website: http://www.irishhealth.com/article.html?id=453
  2. National Advisory Committee on Drugs & Public Health Information and Research Branch (2016) Prevalence of drug use and gambling in Ireland & drug use in Northern Ireland. Bulletin 1. Dublin: National Advisory Committee on Drugs and Alcohol.
  3. European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (2016) European Drug Report 2016: trends and developments. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union.
  4. Treatment data HRB National Drugs Library interactive tables.
  5. Health Research Board. (2016) National Drug-Related Deaths Index 2004 to 2014 data. Dublin: Health Research Board
  6. Irish National Focal Point to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (2016) Ireland: national report for 2015 – harms and harm reduction. Dublin: Health Research Board.
  7. Irish National Focal Point to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (2016) Ireland: national report for 2015 – drug markets and crime. Dublin: Health Research Board.
  8. An Garda Siochana. (2016) An Garda Siochana: annual report 2015. An Garda Siochana, Dublin.

And see also, European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (2016) Perspectives on drugs: cocaine trafficking to Europe. Lisbon: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction.

How to cite this factsheet:

HRB National Drugs Library (2017) Cocaine: the Irish situation. HRB National Drugs Library, Dublin www.drugsandalcohol.ie/24954

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Other factsheets in this series:

Cocaine: the Irish situation
Opiates: the Irish situation
Sedatives and tranquillisers: the Irish situation
Cannabis: the Irish situation
Alcohol: the Irish situation

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