Phenylalkylamine abuse among opiate addicts attending a methadone treatment programme in the Republic of Ireland

Abstract

Since the early 1990s ring-substituted derivatives of amphetamine have been abused widely in the Republic of Ireland. The main ring-substituted amphetamines being abused include methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and methylenedioxyethamphetamine (MDEA). A newer illicit synthetic analogue, which has been seized to a lesser extent by Irish police, is N-methyl-1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-butanamine (MBDB). The work presented here involved the determination of the type of ring-substituted amphetamines being abused by a group of recovering opiate abusers participating in a methadone maintenance programme in a Dublin Drug Rehabilitation Centre. Urine samples which tested positive for amphetamines and ring-substituted amphetamines via EMIT immunoassay were subjected to further analysis using GC-MS with MBTFA flash derivatization. It was found that the methylenedioxypropanamines were being abused, as was amphetamine itself. However, no abuse of methylenedioxybutanamines or thioamphetamines was observed.

GC–MS determination of amphetamines in serum using on-line trifluoroacetylation

“…As the extraction solvent of the evaporated residues, ethyl acetate, isooctane and toluene were tested and toluene gave us the highest extraction yield and the least background this was selected for further analyses. Kavanagh et al [13] also used toluene as final injection solvent.…”

“…In this mode the injector needle aspirates first 1 mL pure MBTFA from the appropriate vial, then 2 mL sample extract dissolved in toluene is aspirated from the sample vial. Unlike the method of Kavanagh et al [13], MBTFA was added to the process in an on-line mode and not earlier. Therefore this only used 1 mL of reagent.…”

“…This technique was first applied by Christophersen et al [12]. For the determination of amphetamine-type drugs-of-abuse in biological samples only one study used this technique [13].…”