title: Simultaneous detection of seventeen drugs of abuse and metabolites in hair using solid phase micro extraction (SPME) with GC/MS.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The analysis of pediatric and adult hair is a useful non-invasive biomarker to effectively detect long term exposure to various xenobiotics, specifically drugs of abuse such as cocaine, opiates and amphetamines. Very often individuals are using, or are exposed to multiple drugs simultaneously and therefore it is important to be able to detect them in the same analysis. We have developed a sensitive and specific solid phase micro extraction (SPME) coupled with gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS) to detect 17 different analytes in hair using a single extraction method.
  
  
  METHODS
  Five milligrams of hair is extracted overnight, subjected to solid phase extraction (SPE) and then to SPME-GC/MS. The aimed analytes include amphetamine, methamphetamine, MDA, MDMA, cocaine, benzoylecognine, norcocaine, cocaethylene, methadone, codeine, morphine, 6-AM, oxycodone, oxymorphone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone and meperidone.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The following are the LOD of the various drugs: 0.2ng/mg hair for amphetamine, methamphetamine, MDA, MDMA, morphine, codeine, 6-AM, oxycodone, oxymorphone, hydromorphone, hydrocodone, meperidine and 0.13ng/mg hair for cocaine, benzoylecognine, cocaethylene, norcocaine and methadone.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This GC/MS method is sensitive and specific to detect the presence of these 17 analytes in as little as 5mg of hair and is especially useful for newborn and child hair analysis where the amount of hair is often very limited.
authors: Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada.
authors: Katarina
authors: K
authors: Aleksa
authors: Paula
authors: P
authors: Walasek
authors: Netta
authors: N
authors: Fulga
authors: Bhushan
authors: B
authors: Kapur
authors: Joey
authors: J
authors: Gareri
authors: Gideon
authors: G
authors: Koren
mesh_terms: D000662:Amphetamines / Q000032:analysis*; D003042:Cocaine / Q000032:analysis*; D053593:Forensic Toxicology / Q000379:methods; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006197:Hair / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D057230:Limit of Detection; D009294:Narcotics / Q000032:analysis*; D052617:Solid Phase Microextraction; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D000662:Amphetamines; D009294:Narcotics; D003042:Cocaine