Abstract
(1) Background: Since the beginning of the 21st century, the large number and wide chemical variety of new psychoactive substances (NPS) that enter the market every year has become a public health problem. Given the rapidity with which the drug market is changing, many NPS are not clinically investigated and their effects and health risks are unknown. Drug testing is a very useful tool for this purpose, but, unfortunately, it is not very widespread in individuals with opioid-use disorder under detoxification treatment. The aim of this study is to investigate the use of illicit drugs and NPS in opioid-use disorder (OUD) patients on opioid agonist treatment. (2) Methods: A multicenter, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted at two addiction care services in Barcelona and Badalona, Spain. Urine samples were collected from OUD individuals attending these two centers, who anonymously donated a urine sample at the time of a periodical visit. Samples were analyzed by high-sensitivity gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-high –resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS). (3) Results: Out of the 187 collected and analyzed urine samples, 27.3% were positive for any type of NPS and 8.6% were positive for new synthetic opioids, including fentanyl and its derivatives (NSO). Other frequently detected substances were benzodiazepines in 46.0% of samples, antipsychotics in 27.8% of samples, or cocaine and cannabis in 23.5% of samples. (4) Conclusion: A wide number of NPS, including NSO, have been detected in urine samples from an OUD population. A lack of NPS detection in standard drug screening among drug users can hide the identification of a potential public health problem.
Funder
European Union
Instituto de Salud Carlos III
Gencat Suport Grups de Recerca
Subject
General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Immunology and Microbiology,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
Reference36 articles.
1. A Century of International Drug Control. 100 Years,2008
2. WORLD DRUG REPORT 2: Global Overview: Drug Demand Drug Supply,2021
3. Drug checking services for people who use drugs: a systematic review
4. European Drug Users at Risk from Illicit Fentanyls Mix
5. News: January 2022—UNODC-SMART: 1,124 NPS Reported to UNODC from 134 Countries and Territorieshttps://www.unodc.org/LSS/Announcement/Details/40df1bf0-4f70-4862-844e-20536e0d95fd
Cited by
3 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献