Chapter 20 Unconventional samples and alternative matrices

Abstract

Publisher Summary Trace metals in the human body can accumulate in the hair and can be detected weeks or even months after the original exposure. The search for drugs in human hair started in the late 1970s, thereby resulting ultimately in the routine use of hair analysis as a tool for the detection of long-term drug use in forensic science, traffic medicine, occupational medicine, and clinical toxicology. Because of the increasing knowledge of drug incorporation mechanisms in hair and the availability of more sensitive and specific analytical techniques, the number of studies relating to hair analysis has increased exponentially during the past decade. Several reports have demonstrated that sweat is a suitable alternative biological matrix for monitoring recent drug use and provides an additional tool for monitoring drug use—for example, in detoxification centers. Another alternative is testing oral fluids, which involves a noninvasive collection procedure and that is more convenient than urine sampling when observation of the donor is required to avoid adulteration, substitution, and dilution of the sample. Several studies have shown that a reasonably good correlation can be found between the presence and absence of drugs in oral fluid and blood.