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Drug checking to detect fentanyl and new psychoactive substances
Joseph J Palamar1, Alberto Salomone2,3, Monica J Barratt4,5
1Department of Population Health, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, New York, USA.
Current Opinion in Psychiatry
|March 19, 2020
Summary
Drug checking services analyze drug samples for safety and composition, with increased use due to fentanyl and NPS. Further research is needed to understand behavioral responses and expand services to broader populations.
Area of Science:
- Forensic Science
- Public Health
- Toxicology
Background:
- Drug checking services offer anonymous chemical analysis of illicit substances.
- Services provide feedback on drug strength, dose, and adulterants.
- Increased use of drug checking is linked to rising fentanyl deaths and new psychoactive substances (NPS).
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the current state of drug checking technologies and practices.
- To examine analysis methods, adulteration rates, and behavioral responses to drug checking results.
- To identify gaps in current drug checking research and service provision.
Main Methods:
- Review of various technologies used for detecting fentanyl, its analogs, and NPS.
- Inclusion of proxy drug checking (biospecimen testing) as a method.
- Analysis of research focusing on high-risk populations versus broader populations.
Main Results:
- Diverse technologies are employed for detecting fentanyl, analogs, and NPS.
- Proxy drug checking is emerging as a common practice.
- A research dichotomy exists between high-risk groups and those exposed to NPS like synthetic cathinones.
Conclusions:
- Drug checking research and services predominantly target opioid consumers and attendees of nightlife/festivals.
- There is a need to expand drug checking focus to the general population.
- Further research is required to address barriers, understand behavioral impacts of results, and enhance public health surveillance.