Customs investigation and drug enforcement services are interested in a rapid and reliable identification of smugglers (e.g. body packers) and dealers. In contrast workplace testing and traffic controls are aiming at the detection of intoxicated persons via the determination of illegal narcotics in body fluids like urine or blood.DRUGWIPE is a pen size, test strip based immunochemical detector for narcotic contaminations on surfaces. It is extremely simple to apply and takes about two minutes to read test results without depending upon any frirther technical means. This paper describes the applicability of DRUGWIPE to identify drug smugglers or dealers as well as consumers. With respect to the situation and the initial suspicion the test indicates handling as well as consumption. In cooperation with the Institute for Legal Medicine in Munich suspicious drivers were examined with DRUG WIPE for the abuse of illegal narcotics.Test results from this test series are presented and compared with the results from the blood or urine analysis. The question wether the detected traces of illegal narcotics on the body surface of suspicious drivers are coming from transpiration or external contamination are discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.