Analytical findings in used syringes from a syringe exchange program

Area of Science:

• Forensic Chemistry
• Public Health
• Toxicology

Background:

• Syringe Exchange Programs (SEP) are vital for harm reduction among people who inject drugs.
• Analyzing syringe contents offers a direct method to understand drug use patterns.

Purpose of the Study:

• To scientifically analyze the contents of used syringes to gather drug use information.
• To identify prevalent drugs and adulterants in a specific urban setting.

Main Methods:

• Collected 357 used syringes from New York City for qualitative analysis.
• Employed gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for screening and liquid chromatography-quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry (LC-QTOF) for confirmation.

Main Results:

• 77.0% of syringes tested positive for at least one substance.
• Heroin (72.0%), cocaine (34.9%), and fentanyl (13.5%) were the most frequently detected drugs.
• Common adulterants included quinine/quinidine (18.5%), levamisole (12.0%), and caffeine (11.6%).

Conclusions:

• Drug content analysis from street samples aids in identifying emerging substances.
• This data provides crucial information for harm reduction programs to develop targeted interventions against drug abuse.