Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation
May 22, 2013
Anders Helander, Olof Beck, Robert Hägerkvist et al.
82 citations
New psychoactive substances, sold online as 'legal highs' or disguised as 'bath salts' and 'plant food', are increasingly used by young people in Sweden. In a project monitoring these drugs, urine and blood samples from 103 emergency department cases of suspected recreational drug intoxication were analyzed. Psychoactive substances were detected in 82% of cases; 78% of subjects were 25 or younger, and 81% were male. Detected substances included synthetic cannabinoids, substituted cathinones, tryptamines, plant-based substances, and conventional drugs. In 44% of cases, more than one new or conventional drug was present. The findings document widespread use of diverse new psychoactive substances among Swedish youth.
Journal of chromatography. B, Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences
April 15, 2009
Kristian Björnstad, Olof Beck, Anders Helander
71 citations
A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method was developed to detect ten plant-derived psychoactive substances in urine simultaneously. The method uses direct injection of diluted urine with three deuterated internal standards, achieving separation in 14 minutes. Calibration curves were linear with correlation coefficients above 0.999. Imprecision at high (1000 micrograms per liter) and low (50 micrograms per liter) concentrations ranged from 4.9% to 13.8% and 8.3% to 26%, respectively. Ion suppression effects were limited. The method proved useful for investigating authentic intoxication cases and covered clinically relevant concentration ranges.
Journal of Analytical Toxicology
January 1, 1998
Olof Beck, Anders Helander, Christine Karlson-Stiber et al.
58 citations
Mushrooms containing psilocybin are often used for intentional intoxication, sometimes leading to adverse reactions with tachycardia that psilocybin alone does not explain. This study detected phenylethylamine in Psilocybe semilanceata using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and found its amount varies more than psilocybin. The highest phenylethylamine level, 146 micrograms per gram wet weight, came from mushrooms involved in a case where three young men were hospitalized. Comparing symptoms from magic mushroom intoxication with those from pure psilocybin or phenylethylamine suggests phenylethylamine may contribute to adverse reactions.
Clinical toxicology (Philadelphia, Pa.)
July 1, 2009
Kristian Björnstad, Peter Hultén, Olof Beck et al.
35 citations
Over a 4-year period, 103 urine samples from mainly young people (age range 13-52 years, median 19) were collected at emergency wards in Sweden from patients who admitted or were suspected of ingesting psychoactive plant materials. Among 53 cases where ingestion of any of 11 plant-derived substances was admitted or suspected, 41 (77%) were confirmed by bioanalytical methods. Psilocin from hallucinogenic mushrooms was the most frequent drug, accounting for 54% of cases. The most common means of drug acquisition (56%) was purchase over the Internet. Having bioanalytical methods for detection of plant-derived psychoactives is important for clinical toxicology services.