Citation

Rohrich J, Schmidt K, Kauert G. Blutalkohol 1997; 34(2): 102-114.

Affiliation

Rohrich, J., Zentrum der Rechtsmedizin, Abt. II, 60596 Frankfurt/Main, Germany

Copyright

(Copyright © 1997, International Committee on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety and Bund gegen Alkohol und Drogen im Straßenverkehr, Publisher Steintor Verlag)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Saliva can be collected non-invasively and may therefore be a useful specimen for the pre-testing of drug of abuse. In the presented study saliva samples of drug users were examined with the immunoassay Triage and GC/MS in order to evaluate the suitability of the Triage assay of saliva testing. The test procedure of the Triage assay had to be modified slightly due to the higher viscosity of saliva in comparison to urine. A total of 78 volunteers participated in this study. No saliva could be collected in 16 of the cases and 62 samples were tested with Triage. The following average confirmation rates for positive and negative Triage results were found: Amphetamines (amphetamine, MDA, MDMA, MDE) 76%, cannabinoids (THC) 100%, cocaine (including benzoylecgonine) 74%, opiates (morphine, codeine, dihydrocodeine) 93% and methadone 86%. Altogether 86% of all Triage results could be confirmed by GC/MS, suggesting the possibility of using the assay for saliva testing.