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Drugs-of-abuse testing. Screening and confirmation
1Division of Clinical Laboratory Devices, US Food and Drug Administration, Rockville, Maryland.
Clinics in Laboratory Medicine
|September 1, 1990
Summary
Rapid drug abuse screening tests require confirmation with more specific methods. Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) is the gold standard for accurate drug testing results, ensuring reliable drug abuse detection.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Toxicology
- Analytical Chemistry
- Clinical Diagnostics
Background:
- Rapid screening tests for drugs of abuse are widely used but have limitations.
- Confirmation of initial screening results is crucial for accuracy and legal defensibility.
- Various analytical techniques exist, but their suitability for drug confirmation varies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To emphasize the necessity of confirmatory testing for all rapid urine drug screening tests.
- To highlight the importance of selecting highly sensitive and specific confirmation methods.
- To discuss the established role of Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) in drug abuse testing.
Main Methods:
- Review of current practices in drug abuse screening and confirmation.
- Discussion of analytical principles underlying different confirmation techniques.
- Evaluation of Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) as a gold standard method.
Main Results:
- Rapid screening tests alone are insufficient for definitive drug abuse identification.
- GC/MS offers superior sensitivity and specificity for confirming drug presence.
- Accurate labeling and data support are essential for all drug testing devices.
Conclusions:
- Confirmatory testing is indispensable following any positive drug screening result.
- GC/MS is the most rigorous and widely accepted method for confirming drugs of abuse.
- Users must understand screening test limitations and rely on validated confirmatory procedures.