title: A comprehensive LC-MS-based quantitative analysis of fentanyl-like drugs in plasma and urine.
abstract: Fentanyl, norfentanyl, alfentanil, sufentanil, remifentanil and 3-methylfentanyl are potent, short-acting, synthetic narcotic analgesics that are not revealed in standard opiate immunoassays. In this article, a fully validated analytical method for the determination of these fentanyl-type compounds in plasma and urine is presented, consisting of a liquid-liquid extraction followed by a LC-MS/MS analysis using electrospray ionisation in the positive ionisation mode. Fentanyl-d(5) and norfentanyl-d(5) were used as internal standards. The lower LOQ in plasma and urine was 0.1 ng/mL for fentanyl, norfentanyl, alfentanil, remifentanil and 3-methylfentanyl, and 0.2 ng/mL for sufentanil. The method proved linear over a concentration range of 0.2-50 ng/mL for sufentanil and 0.1-50 ng/mL for all other analytes, with correlation coefficients of 0.998 or better. The analytical procedure showed excellent selectivity and precision (all CVs below 15%) for all analytes. Accuracy was good, except for sufentanil, where deviations of more than 15% from nominal concentrations were observed. No matrix effects were observed, and stability of stock and internal standard solutions was within acceptability limits.
authors.affiliation: AZ Groeninge Hospital, Laboratory, Kortrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cooreman
authors.forename: Christa
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Deprez
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Martens
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Van Bocxlaer
authors.forename: Kathleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Croes
mesh_terms: D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000652:urine*; D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D005283:Fentanyl / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000652:urine*; D057230:Limit of Detection; D013058:Mass Spectrometry / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D015394:Molecular Structure; D012015:Reference Standards; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D000701:Analgesics, Opioid; D005283:Fentanyl