The Impact of Mass Spectrometry on Patients' Medical and Nonmedical Lives.

Abstract

The various forms of mass spectrometry (MS) instrumentation have had a major impact on testing for analytes performed with clinical and forensic laboratories over the past decade. Improvements in MS instrumentation have led to the use of MS in many areas. To highlight the value of MS testing, short reports are presented that are relevant to the following fields: pain management, transplant medicine, clinical toxicology, designer drug testing, genetic metabolic disorders, nutrition, dietary exposure to heavy metals, herbals and supplements, forensic pathology, pharmacogenomics, homeland security, performance enhancing drugs and peptides, clinical microbiology, physician licensing, and environmental exposures. These reports are based on real patients. The "stories" have been altered to comply with privacy regulations. Analysis of MS provides objective results that have an impact on many areas of medicine and society as a whole. Accurate analysis has an impact on guidance for medical practices. The value of MS testing will continue to grow in the years to come.