Clinical Chemistry
September 1, 2002
Gisela Skopp, Lucia Pötsch, Rainer Mattern et al.
37 citations
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a potent hallucinogen that is rapidly metabolized and unstable in biological fluids, making its detection in urine challenging. After a typical street dose of 40–120 μg, LSD concentration in urine falls below 1 μg/L within hours. Metabolites N-desmethyl-LSD (nor-LSD) and 2-oxo-3-hydroxy-LSD (O-H-LSD) have been identified, with O-H-LSD measured at concentrations severalfold higher (0.02–21.4 μg/L). Liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) improves detection. LSD decomposes in urine exposed to heat, sunlight, or ultraviolet light, but stability data on its major metabolites were lacking. This study assessed the stability of LSD, O-H-LSD, and nor-LSD in urine under different storage conditions using LC-MS/MS, aiming to inform sample transport and storage practices.
Psychopharmacology
September 27, 2011
Wendy M. Bosker, Kim P. C. Kuypers, Silke Conen et al.
32 citations
Taking MDMA (ecstasy) during the night does not improve driving performance the next morning after sleep loss, nor does it counteract the impairing effects of sleep deprivation. In a controlled driving test, weaving (measured as standard deviation of lateral position) was significantly increased during morning drives after a night without sleep, regardless of whether participants had taken 0, 25, 50, or 100 mg of MDMA the previous evening. The degree of impairment was clinically relevant and comparable to that seen with a blood alcohol concentration above 0.8 mg/mL. MDMA cannot compensate for sleep-loss-induced driving impairment, and sleep-deprived drivers who have taken MDMA are unfit to drive.
International Journal of Legal Medicine
March 1, 2016
Nicole Stachel, Andrea Jacobsen-Bauer, Gisela Skopp
A case of driving under the influence of methoxydiphenidine (MXP) is reported, with a serum concentration of 57 ng/mL detected via liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. The subject also had amphetamine (111 ng/mL), MDMA (28 ng/mL), and its metabolite (3 ng/mL) present. Symptoms included amnesia, out-of-body experiences, bizarre behavior, and decreased motor abilities. MXP is structurally and pharmacologically similar to phencyclidine and ketamine, acting at the NMDA receptor, suggesting it likely exerts severe psychotropic effects in humans. However, information on human toxicity, duration and intensity of impairing effects, interpretation of blood concentrations, and detectability in routine screenings is lacking. Confirmation analysis may be limited to cases with specific police intelligence.