The importance of considering polysubstance use: lessons from cocaine research

Polysubstance use (PSU; the ingestion of more than one drug of abuse within a defined period) is the norm rather than the exception for individuals with substance use disorders. Such behavior no doubt reflects a variety of causes, including the desire for enhanced psychoactive effects, alleviation of negative side-effects of one substance with another, and substance accessibility. Most substance use research, however, (including the vast majority of preclinical research) has focused on individual substances in isolation or treated PSU as a “nuisance” variable.
Source: Drug and Alcohol Dependence - Category: Addiction Authors: Tags: Review Source Type: research