New high finance

A wave of drug abuse has rocked Wall Street hard and its pushing record numbers of strung-out bankers, traders and other hotshot financial workers to seek treatment, a Post investigation reveals.

The Streets raging drug-dependency explosion may be out of control, medical experts say, as the once-Masters of the Universe struggle with reduced pay and staff.

Where once cocaine was the drug of choice for money managers, financial-service employees are now behind the surge in opioid painkiller use such as: Vicodin-, Oxycontin- and Percocet-linked visits to New York City emergency departments, a recent city health report says.

As a result of that report, Mayor Bloomberg announced new emergency-room guidelines to prevent opioid prescription painkiller abuse.

Prescription painkillers can provide life-changing relief for people in dire health situations, but they can be extremely dangerous if used or prescribed improperly, the mayor said.

The most recent data show that visits to New York City emergency rooms for opioid painkiller-linked conditions has risen to 143 patients out of every 100,000 almost tripling in the last six years.

In a groundbreaking study, University of Pennsylvania professor, Alexandra Michel, takes a chilling look at the dark side of life for a modern financier: Six out of 10 investment bankers suffered serious stress - emotional and physical problems abound - with many abusing prescription drugs.

I am seeing an increase in the need to refer my patients to drug-treatment centers, said Dr. Alden Cass, a Midtown psychologist who treats bankers, hedge-fund traders, financial advisers and other Street pros. Cass sees about 45 patients each week.

The number of referrals I have made to psychiatrists has probably gone up . . . 35 percent to 40 percent in the past year, he said.

Cass cited profit-crazed banks as a factor in tipping many pros over the edge.

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New high finance