Gallardo E, Queiroz J A
Centro de Investigação em Ciências da Saúde, Universidade da Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal.
Biomed Chromatogr. 2008 Aug;22(8):795-821. doi: 10.1002/bmc.1009.
The use of alternative specimens in the field of toxicology was first described in 1979, when hair analysis was used to document chronic drug exposure. Since then, the use of these 'alternative' samples has gained tremendous importance in forensic toxicology, as well as in clinic toxicology, doping control and workplace drug testing. It is not surprising, therefore, that a large number of papers dealing with the determination of several classes of drugs in saliva, sweat, meconium and hair have been published ever since, owing to the fact that chromatographic equipment is becoming more and more sensitive, mass spectrometry (and tandem mass spectrometry) being the most widely used analytical tool, combined with gas or liquid chromatography. 'Alternative' specimens present a number of advantages over the 'traditional' samples normally used in toxicology (e.g. blood, urine and tissues), namely the fact that their collection is not invasive, their adulteration is difficult, and they may allow increased windows of detection for certain drugs. The main disadvantage of this kind of samples is that drugs are present in very low concentrations, and therefore high-sensitivity techniques are required to accomplish the analysis. This paper reviews a series of publications on the use of alternative specimens, with special focus on the main analytical and chromatographic problems that these samples present, as well on their advantages and disadvantages over traditional samples in documenting drug exposure.
毒理学领域中替代样本的使用最早于1979年被描述，当时毛发分析被用于记录长期药物暴露情况。从那时起，这些“替代”样本在法医毒理学、临床毒理学、兴奋剂检测和工作场所药物检测中变得极为重要。因此，自那时以来，由于色谱设备越来越灵敏，质谱（和串联质谱）成为最广泛使用的分析工具，并与气相或液相色谱联用，大量关于唾液、汗液、胎粪和毛发中几类药物测定的论文得以发表。“替代”样本相对于毒理学中通常使用的“传统”样本（如血液、尿液和组织）具有许多优势，即其采集是非侵入性的，难以掺假，并且对于某些药物可能允许延长检测窗口期。这类样本的主要缺点是药物浓度极低，因此需要高灵敏度技术来完成分析。本文综述了一系列关于替代样本使用的出版物，特别关注这些样本所呈现的主要分析和色谱问题，以及它们在记录药物暴露方面相对于传统样本的优缺点。
