The Texture of Psychoactive Illicit Drugs in Iran: Adulteration with Lead and other Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients

ABSTRACT

Psychoactive illicit drugs are widely used all over the world. Due to the high demand for illicit drugs, adulteration of substances with poisonous and active pharmaceutical ingredients is a common phenomenon in some countries. Lead and other active pharmaceutical ingredients are among adulterants added to illicit drugs intentionally. In the present study, we analyzed four major abused street drugs in Iran’s drug black market (opium, Iranian crack, ecstasy tablets, and crystal methamphetamine) to assess active pharmaceutical ingredients and determine a quantitative assay of lead. A total of 40 psychoactive drugs were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, and flame atomic absorption spectroscopy. The results demonstrated that psychoactive drugs were adulterated with different drug categories, such as tramadol, ketamine, methadone, acetaminophen, and caffeine. Lead was found in all analyzed samples, ranging from 9–90 ppm. The smallest lead level was detected in methamphetamine samples. Iranian crack samples contained the highest amount of lead. Psychoactive illicit drugs were adulterated with different drug classes and also lead. Lead-adulterated psychoactive drugs are among the new sources of exposure to lead, while illicit drugs’ contamination with different drugs may present a health hazard for drug-abusing patients.

KEYWORDS:

• Active pharmaceutical ingredients
• adulteration
• analytical toxicology
• psychotropic illicit drugs
• substance-related disorders

Acknowledgments

We’d like to thank our colleagues at the Legal Medicine Research Center, Tehran, Iran, for their cooperation in performing the present study.