Adelaide Medical School, The University of Adelaide, Australia.
Forensic Science SA, Australia.
Med Sci Law. 2021 Apr;61(2):130-137. doi: 10.1177/0025802420986707. Epub 2021 Jan 10.
The term 'amphetamine' refers to a class of synthetic drugs which includes methamphetamine. The latter is a globally popular drug of abuse which induces euphoria, affecting cognitive/psychomotor performance and sleep. It also provokes risk taking and violent behaviour. The central effects of methamphetamine are due to the overproduction of neurotransmitters, resulting in high levels of dopamine. In recent years, there have been significant increases in cases of methamphetamine abuse in North and South America, Australia and Asia due to its ready availability and low cost. The following review examines changing trends in methamphetamine use and problems that arise diagnostically in medico-legal cases in determining the significance of post-mortem blood levels, the relationship of these to ante-mortem levels, the possible effects on physical and psychological behaviours and the possible contribution of the drug to a lethal episode.
“amphetamine”一词是指一类合成药物，其中包括冰毒。后者是一种在全球范围内流行的滥用药物，会引起欣快感，影响认知/心理运动表现和睡眠。它还会引发冒险行为和暴力行为。冰毒的中枢作用是由于神经递质的过度产生，导致多巴胺水平升高。近年来，由于其易得性和低成本，在北美、南美、澳大利亚和亚洲，冰毒滥用的案例显著增加。以下综述检查了冰毒使用的变化趋势，以及在法医案例中诊断出现的问题，以确定死后血液水平的意义、这些水平与生前水平的关系、对身体和心理行为的可能影响，以及该药物对致命事件的可能贡献。
