Hair Analysis for Drug Abuse: I. Determination of Methamphetamine and Amphetamine in Hair by Stable Isotope Dilution Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry Method

Abstract

Determination of methamphetamine and amphetamine in hair was performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry using stable isotope-labeled internal standards, 2-methylamino-1-phenylpropane-2,3,3,3-d4 and 2-amino-1-phenylpropane-2,3,3,3-d4. Extraction of hair with methanol/5M hydrochloric acid (20:1) using ultrasonication was chosen as the standard method. The calibration curves for amphetamines in the hair were linear from 1 to 100 ng/mg (r greater than 0.99). The detection limit was 0.5 ng/mg at the 95% confidence level. The coefficients of variation (CV) (n = 8) of analysis using the spiked hair with methamphetamine were from 0.7 to 6%. The CV (n = 8) of analysis of the methamphetamine abuser's hair was 17.5%. Sectional analysis of monkey and human hair after methamphetamine ingestion suggested a good correlation between the duration of drug use and drug distribution in the hair.