title: Urinary elimination of 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta9-tetrahydrocannnabinol in cannabis users during continuously monitored abstinence.
abstract: The time course of 11-nor-9-carboxy-Delta9-tetrahydrocannnabinol (THCCOOH) elimination in urine was characterized in 60 cannabis users during 24 h monitored abstinence on a closed research unit for up to 30 days. Six thousand, one hundred fifty-eight individual urine specimens were screened by immunoassay with values > or = 50 ng/mL classified as positive. Urine specimens were confirmed for THCCOOH by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry following base hydrolysis and liquid-liquid or solid-phase extraction. In 60%, the maximum creatinine normalized concentration occurred in the first urine specimen; in 40%, peaks occurred as long as 2.9 days after admission. Data were divided into three groups, 0-50, 51-150, and > 150 ng/mg, based on the creatinine corrected initial THCCOOH concentration. There were statistically significant correlations between groups and number of days until first negative and last positive urine specimens; mean number of days were 0.6 and 4.3, 3.2 and 9.7, and 4.7 and 15.4 days, respectively, for the three groups. These data provide guidelines for interpreting urine cannabinoid test results and suggest appropriate detection windows for differentiating new cannabis use from residual drug excretion.
authors.affiliation: Chemistry and Drug Metabolism Section, Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Robert S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Goodwin
authors.forename: William D
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: Darwin
authors.forename: C Nora
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shih
authors.forename: Shou-Hua
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Marilyn A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Huestis
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D013759:Dronabinol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000652:urine; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D002189:Marijuana Abuse / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000652:urine; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: C016780:11-nor-delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid; D013759:Dronabinol