P rolonged drug use can change the brain in fundamental and possibly permanent ways, say experts.
But he notes that just as people with strokes are able to, addicts can recover by using other parts of their brain that weren't affected by the drugs. These PET scans show that changes in the way a cocaine abuser's brain metabolizes glucose persist long after the person has stopped using the drug. But the brain does appear to be slowly returning towards normal. The research into cocaine by Mark Gold of the Florida-based Brain Institute has found that changes in the number and functioning of dopamine receptors and transporters in the brain persisted for many months after abstinence. However, Gold says, there is ongoing research into the ability of brain cells to recover from damage caused by drugs.