| Title: |
Technical and health governance aspects of the external quality assessment system for classical and new psychoactive substances analysis testing in blood |
| Authors: |
Di Gaudio F.; Giaccone V.; Cucina A.; Indelicato S.; Raso M.; Brunacci G.; Lundari A.; Rotolo M. C.; Busardò F.; La Rocca M. |
| Contributors: |
Di Gaudio, F.; Giaccone, V.; Cucina, A.; Indelicato, S.; Raso, M.; Brunacci, G.; Lundari, A.; Rotolo, M.C.; Busardò, F.; La Rocca, M. |
| Publisher Information: |
Elsevier |
| Publication Year: |
2024 |
| Collection: |
IRIS Università degli Studi di Palermo |
| Subject Terms: |
Drug of abuse; External quality assessment; ISO/IEC 17025; ISO/IEC 17043; NPS; Test performance evaluation |
| Description: |
New psychoactive substances (NPS) are uncontrolled analogues of existing drugs or newly synthesized chemicals that exhibit psychopharmacological effects. Due to their diverse nature, composition, and increasing prevalence, they present significant challenges to the healthcare system and drug control policies. In response, healthcare system laboratories have developed analytical methods to detect NPS in biological samples. As a Regional Reference Centre, the Sicilian CRQ Laboratory (Regional Laboratory for Quality Control) developed and conducted an External Quality Assessment (EQA) study to assess, in collaboration with the Istituto Superiore di Sanita` (ISS), the ability of different Italian laboratories to identify NPS and traditional drugs of abuse (DOA) in biological matrices. Two blood samples were spiked with substances from various drug classes, including synthetic cannabinoids, cathinones, synthetic opiates, and benzodiazepines, at concentrations ranging from 2 to 10 ng/mL. The blood samples were freeze-dried to ensure the stability of DOA and NPS. Twenty-two laboratories from the Italian healthcare system participated in this assessment. The information provided by the laboratories during the registration in an in-house platform included a general description of the laboratory, analytical technique, and the chosen panels of analytes. The same platform was employed to collect and statistically analyze the data and record laboratory feedback and comments. The evaluation of the results revealed that the participating laboratories employed three different techniques for analyzing the samples: GC-MS, LC-MS, and immunoenzymatic methods. Approximately 90 % of the laboratories utilized LC-MS techniques. Around 40 % of false negative results were obtained, with the worst results in the identification of 5-chloro AB PINACA. The results showed that laboratories that used LC-MS methods obtained better specificity and sensitivity compared to the laboratories using other techniques. The results obtained from this ... |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| Language: |
English |
| Relation: |
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pmid/38728951; info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/wos/WOS:001331589500001; volume:245; numberofpages:6; journal:JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL AND BIOMEDICAL ANALYSIS; https://hdl.handle.net/10447/695519 |
| DOI: |
10.1016/j.jpba.2024.116175 |
| Availability: |
https://hdl.handle.net/10447/695519; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpba.2024.116175 |
| Rights: |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.56C3F09A |
| Database: |
BASE |