title: The effect of formaldehyde solution in the gas chromatographic determination of morphine.
abstract: Morphine glucuronide upon acid hydrolysis and in the presence of formaldehyde solution is converted to three primary compounds as determined by gas chromatography. The importance of this conversion as it pertains to the total quantity of morphine in formaldehyde-fixed specimens is discussed. A request for quantitation--in a suspected case of morphine overdose after the body had been embalmed but before an autopsy could be performed--initiated the research discussed in this article.
mesh_terms: D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D005554:Forensic Medicine; D005557:Formaldehyde; D009020:Morphine / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D005557:Formaldehyde; D009020:Morphine