Development of an in-house HPLC method for the analysis of ecstasy-laced beverages

Abstract

Abstract Background Pills of ecstasy continue to be the major drug of abuse among nightclub patrons. This stimulant type of substance can be taken orally in many ways, one of which is by drink spiking where the tablet or its powder is deliberately added to some beverage before consumption. Method A high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method was developed to quantify three analytes (methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine and ketamine) extracted from beverages associated with drink spiking. Ribena drink, Lipton tea drink and Pepsi soft drink were employed as the target sample matrices for validation studies. Results The HPLC method was found precise (RSD 0.994. The method was sensitive to detect at least 0.004 mg/mL spiked drugs and precise to quantify the lowest limit of analytes at 0.02 mg/mL. Conclusion Analysis of beverages which were contrivedly spiked with genuine ecstasy substances substantiated that the method is fit for the intended purpose.

Keywords

• Ecstasy
• Beverage
• Drink spiking
• HPLC