The use of nails as an alternative matrix for the long-term detection of previous drug intake: validation of sensitive UHPLC-MS/MS methods for the quantification of 76 substances and comparison of analytical results for drugs in nail and hair samples.

Purpose: This article describes the validation of multi-target methods for the determination of 76 different analytes in hair and nail samples. Segmented hair and nail samples taken from autopsy cases were included in this study.

Method: Drugs of abuse, psychotropic drugs, and other drugs were included for the validation of this method.

Possibilities for discrimination between chewing of coca leaves and abuse of cocaine by hair analysis including hygrine, cuscohygrine, cinnamoylcocaine and cocaine metabolite/cocaine ratios.

Contrary to the illegal use of any form of manufactured cocaine, chewing of coca leaves and drinking of coca tea are allowed and are very common and socially integrated in several South American countries. Because of this different legal state, an analytical method for discrimination between use of coca leaves and abuse of processed cocaine preparations is required. In this study, the applicability of hair analysis for this purpose was examined.

Cannabinoid findings in children hair - what do they really tell us? An assessment in the light of three different analytical methods with focus on interpretation of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A concentrations.

Hair analysis for drugs and drugs of abuse is increasingly applied in child protection cases. To determine the potential risk to a child living in a household where drugs are consumed, not only can the hair of the parents be analyzed but also the hair of the child. In the case of hair analysis for cannabinoids, the differentiation between external contamination and systemic uptake is particularly difficult, since the drug is quite often handled extensively prior to consumption (e.

Nails are a potential alternative matrix to hair for drug analysis in general unknown screenings by liquid-chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Purpose: In this study, the usefulness of nail samples instead of hair for a general unknown screening (GUS) for drugs was tested. An alternative matrix for long term detection is still needed in cases where no hair is available for analysis.

Methods: Hair and nail samples from 70 postmortem cases were analyzed by liquid-chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Methadone and illegal drugs in hair from children with parents in maintenance treatment or suspected for drug abuse in a German community.

Background: Children living in homes with drug-addicted parents are in a steady danger of poisoning and may suffer from neglect, maltreatment, and lagging behind in development. Hair analysis could be a suitable way to examine this endangering exposure to drugs.

Methods: Hair samples from 149 children (aged 1-14 years) living with parents substituted by methadone and/or suspected for abuse of illegal drugs, and from 124 of the parents in a German community were investigated by liquid chromatography-hybrid quadrupole time-of flight mass spectrometry and by headspace solid phase microextraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for methadone, heroin, cocaine, amphetamines, ecstasy, cannabinoids and benzodiazepines and their metabolites or degradation products (32 compounds).

Hair analysis in the detection of long-term use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and its relation to gastrointestinal hemorrhage: an examination of 268 hair and blood samples from autopsy cases.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are commonly used as analgesics and antipyretics in Western countries. Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders are common side effects of NSAIDs and other drugs. This study investigated the correlation between chronic use of these substances and GI lesions by analyzing postmortem blood and hair samples from autopsy cases.

Fatty acid ethyl esters in hair as alcohol markers: estimating a reliable cut-off point by evaluation of 1,057 autopsy cases.

Alcohol abuse is a widespread problem, especially in Western countries. Therefore, it is important to have markers of alcohol consumption with validated cut-off points. For many years research has focused on analysis of hair for alcohol markers, but data on the performance and reliability of cut-off values are still lacking.

Detecting alcohol abuse: traditional blood alcohol markers compared to ethyl glucuronide (EtG) and fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs) measurement in hair.

Alcohol abuse is a common problem in society; however, the technical capabilities of evaluating individual alcohol consumption using objective biomarkers are rather limited at present. In recent years research has focused on alcohol markers using hair analysis but data on performance and reliable cut-off values are still lacking. In this study 169 candidates were tested to compare traditional biomarkers, such as carbohydrate-deficient-transferrin (CDT), gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT), aspartate amino transferase, alanine amino transferase and the mean corpuscular volume of the erythrocytes, with alcohol markers detectable in hair such as ethyl glucuronide (EtG) and fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs).

Fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs) as markers for alcohol in meconium: method validation and implementation of a screening program for prenatal drug exposure.

Alcohol consumption during pregnancy is a widespread problem and can cause severe fetal damage. As the diagnosis of fetal alcohol syndrome is difficult, the implementation of a reliable marker for alcohol consumption during pregnancy into meconium drug screening programs would be invaluable. A previously published gas chromatography mass spectrometry method for the detection of fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs) as alcohol markers in meconium was optimized and newly validated for a sample size of 50 mg.

Quantification of fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEE) and ethyl glucuronide (EtG) in meconium from newborns for detection of alcohol abuse in a maternal health evaluation study.

Fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEE) and ethyl glucuronide (EtG) were determined in 602 meconium samples in a maternal health evaluation study for detection of gestational alcohol consumption. A validated headspace solid phase microextraction method in combination with GC-MS was used for FAEE and the cumulative concentration of ethyl palmitate, ethyl linoleate, ethyl oleate, and ethyl stearate with a cut-off of 500 ng/g was applied for interpretation. A new and simple method was developed and validated for quantification of EtG from 10-20 mg meconium with D(5)-EtG as internal standard consisting of 30 min.