Cocaine is a benzoid acid ester that that was originally used as a local anesthetic, but is no longer used because of its potent addictive qualities. When given in high doses systemically, cocaine has mood elevating effects that have led to its widescale abuse. High doses of cocaine can be associated with toxic reactions including hyperthermia, rhabdomyolysis, shock and acute liver injury which can be severe and even fatal.

Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid obtained from leaves of the South American shrub Erythroxylon coca. It has a role as a local anaesthetic, a central nervous system stimulant, a sodium channel blocker, an adrenergic uptake inhibitor, a dopamine uptake inhibitor, a serotonin uptake inhibitor, a sympathomimetic agent, a vasoconstrictor agent, a xenobiotic, an environmental contaminant, a plant metabolite and a mouse metabolite. It is a methyl ester, a benzoate ester, a tertiary amino compound and a tropane alkaloid. It is a conjugate base of a cocaine(1+).