Fentanyl detection and quantification using portable Raman spectroscopy in community drug checking

Abstract

Community-based drug checking has emerged as a harm reduction practice aimed at people who use drugs. Using a portable Raman spectrometer and the statistical method of partial least squares regression, a model was developed to quantify fentanyl in both powder binary mixtures and more complex ternary mixtures. The model was then applied to samples collected over a 2-year period while operating the drug checking service. As an unpredictable drug supply will always pose a risk for quantification with portable drug checking technologies, we implement check steps that guide the harm reduction decisions and conversations surrounding quantitative results.

Electroanalysis of Fentanyl and Its New Analogs: A Review

“…Moreover, almost 30% of cases were intentional drug abuses to commit suicide [ 19 ]. This brief statistical overview is in good agreement with data described in the literature, which confirm that opioid intoxications are a global problem [ 8 , 12 , 16 , 17 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ].…”

A distributed model to expand the reach of drug checking

“…While portable Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy is popular and has been demonstrated to be of significant value in identifying components such as fentanyl in drug mixtures, its limited sensitivity often requires other methods for the detection of potent fentanyl analogues such as carfentanil, as well as benzodiazepines (McCrae et al, 2020;Ti et al, 2020Ti et al, , 2021Tobias et al, 2020). Raman and the associated surface enhanced Raman (SERS) show potential with benzodiazepines, specifically etizolam; however, these technologies appear to remain in the pilot stage with new advances still under development (Gozdzialski et al, 2021a(Gozdzialski et al, , 2021b. Drug checking projects are also using traditional labbased instruments such as liquid chromatography-and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, which can report on trace level ingredients and concentrations (TEDI, 2022).…”

“…Community drug checking has been recognized as an important intervention in response to the illicit drug overdose crisis, in which rates of overdose deaths continue to escalate to unprecedented levels (Bardwell and Kerr, 2018; Barratt et al , 2018; Dasgupta et al , 2018; Laing et al , 2018; Measham, 2020). The enduring crisis is linked to the increasingly complex and unpredictable drugs in the illicit market which include synthetic opioids, predominantly fentanyl (Gozdzialski et al , 2021b; Green et al , 2020; McCrae et al , 2020; Ramsay et al , 2021; Ti et al , 2020; Tupper et al , 2018), as well as benzodiazepines (Bowles et al , 2021; McAuley et al , 2022) and the combinations of these active ingredients in the same supply (Gozdzialski et al , 2021a; Laing et al , 2021). Despite heightened demands for decriminalization and widespread access to safer, regulated drug options, there continues to be limited supply options beyond the existing unregulated market (Ivsins et al , 2020; Pardo et al , 2021; Tyndall, 2018).…”

Interpol Review of Drug Analysis 2019-2022

“…(FTIR) spectroscopy and immunoassay strips for fentanyl [ 90 ]; use of Eosin Y as a potential new color test for use in detecting fentanyl [ 91 ]; FTIR spectroscopy and immunoassay strips for checking content of fentanyl in drugs [ 90 ]; SERS method for detecting fentanyl and two of its chemical precursors, despropionylfentanyl (4ANPP) and N-phenethyl-4-piperidinone (NPP) [ 92 ]; electrochemical method for the detection of fentanyl in aqueous solutions [ 93 ]; sensor for fentanyl detection in presence of interferents in pharmaceutical preparations, serum and urine [ 94 ]; Square-wave adsorptive stripping voltammetry (SWAdSV) with a carbon electrode for detection, identification, and semi-quantitation of fentanyl in seized drug samples [ 95 ]; electrochemical sensor for voltammetric determination of fentanyl [ 96 ]; preparation of disposable single-walled carbon nanotube network electrodes for the detection of fentanyl [ 97 ]; 2021 glassy carbon electrode for electrochemical determination of fentanyl [ 98 ]; evaluation of the performance of two immunoassay techniques versus LC-MS/MS for the detection of fentanyl [ 99 ]; portable Raman spectrometer for detection and quantification of fentanyl both powder binary mixtures and more complex ternary mixtures [ 100 ]; colorimetric method for detection of fentanyl using a Rose Bengal probe [ 101 ]; study of false positives obtained when using fentanyl test strips on street sample preparations that included illicit stimulants, cutting agents and/or pharmaceuticals [ 102 ]; handheld, spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS) system used to obtain SERS spectra of fentanyl under simulated field conditions [ 103 ]; SPME-GC-MS to collect and establish the vapor signature of pure pharmaceutical-grade fentanyl and diluted pharmaceutical-grade fentanyl [ 104 ]; portable SERS approach for rapid, on-site identification and quantification of trace fentanyl laced in recreational drugs [ 105 ]; multivariate analysis aided SERS (MVA-SERS) multiplex quantitative detection of trace fentanyl in illicit drug mixtures using a handheld Raman spectrometer [ 106 ]; surface-enhanced shifted excitation Raman difference spectroscopy (SE-SERDS) for trace detection of fentanyl in beverages [ 107 ]; 2022 a surfactant-involved colorimetric assay for detection of fentanyl [ 108 ]; electrochemical sensors for fentanyl detection [ 109 ]; SERS platform for portable detection and identification of trace fentanyl [ 110 ].…”