High-potency opioids added to HairStat drug panels


DES PLAINES, Ill. (September 24, 2010) – United States Drug Testing Laboratories (USDTL), a reference laboratory specializing in testing for alcohol and illicit drug use, released a new hair test for a group of high-potency opioids (HPO) on Friday.  The hair test includes butorphanol (Stadol® ), nalbuphine (Nubain®), naloxone (Narcan® ®), naltrexone (Revia® ) and its metabolite 6-β-naltrexol.  These compounds are typically not included in standard drug testing profiles and are therefore prone to be diverted

 

Butorphanol and nalbuphine are used to treat moderate to severe pain and to supplement anesthesia.  Both are available as an injectable.  Butorphanol is available as a nasal spray for the treatment of migraines.  Naloxone and naltrexone, mu opioid receptor antagonists, have a high affinity for the opiate receptors and out-compete other opiates at the binding sites.  For this reason, naloxone is used to counteract the life-threatening effects of opiate overdose.  Naltrexone has a much longer half-life and therefore more suited to be used for long-term alcohol- and opiate-dependence treatment.

 

The HPO assay is a directed confirmation by LCMSMS.  HPOs may be ordered as a stand-alone test or added to any other HairStat®  5-, 7-, 9-, 10-, 12- or 14-drug profile.  To order any test, researchers and clinicians can contact Client Services at (800) 235-2367 or at customer.service@usdtl.com.

 

USDTL has been a leader in the drug testing industry since 1991 through research and assay development. The laboratory performs more research than other laboratories 10 times our size. USDTL has made significant breakthroughs in the field of analytical toxicology by developing procedures to diagnose newborns for prenatal drug exposure using meconium and umbilical cord tissue and provides workplace and rehabilitation drug testing cost effectively using hair and nail specimens. To find out more, please visit www.usdtl.com.

 

Contact:

Heather Sliwinski, Marketing Communications Manager

Heather.sliwinski@usdtl.com

(847) 375-0770

 

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Tags: hair testing, opioids, opiates