Usefulness of sweat testing for the detection of MDMA after a single-dose administration.
Nine healthy male subjects and recreational users of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) participated in a study aimed to assess the usefulness of sweat testing for the detection of MDMA after a single 100-mg dose. Sweat was collected for up to 24 h with the PharmChek sweat patches from which drugs were eluted and then analyzed by immunoassay and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry using deuterated internal standards. The usefulness of a rapid onsite test, the Drugwipe immunochemical strip test, was also assessed. In the sweat patches, MDMA was detected as early as 1.5 h after consumption and peaked at 24 h. Intersubject variability was large; peak MDMA concentrations for the same dose varied in magnitude 30-fold. MDMA concentrations ranged between 3.2 and 1326.1 ng/patch. Only traces of the minor metabolite 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine were detected. In all subjects, the onsite test with the Drugwipe was positive at 1.5 h (peak time of MDMA plasma concentration). However, few false-negative results (18%) appeared in the first 6 h after administration. Both sweat patch testing and the onsite sweat strip test may find useful application for noninvasive monitoring of MDMA abuse in sweat.
Pichini
Simona
S
Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Roma, Italy.
Navarro
Monica
M
Pacifici
Roberta
R
Zuccaro
Piergiorgio
P
Ortuño
Jordi
J
Farré
Magí
M
Roset
Pere Nolasc
PN
Segura
Jordi
J
de la Torre
Rafael
R
D015104:3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine / Q000032:analysis; D000328:Adult; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006213:Hallucinogens / Q000032:analysis* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D006801:Humans; D007118:Immunoassay; D008297:Male; D008694:Methamphetamine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000737:chemistry; D018817:N-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine / Q000032:analysis* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D011934:Reagent Strips; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D013542:Sweat / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D013997:Time Factors
D006213:Hallucinogens; D011934:Reagent Strips; C079646:4-hydroxy-3-methoxymethamphetamine; D008694:Methamphetamine; D015104:3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine; D018817:N-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine