Abstract
Introduction: Limitations of urine drug-screening (UDS) by immunoassay include false-positive results. Pantoprazole, a proton-pump inhibitor (PPI), is reported to cause false-positive results for THC on UDS. The objective of this study was to determine if oral PPIs cause false-positive THC results using the THC One Step Marijuana Test Strip®.
Methods: Eligible healthy volunteers completed a 5-day course of a PPI followed by urine testing using the THC One Step Marijuana Test Strip®. Phase one included 3 subjects taking pantoprazole 40 mg once daily for 5 days. On day 5, urine specimens underwent THC screening. Phase two included 9 subjects randomized to 5-day supply of once-daily oral esomeprazole 20 mg, lansoprazole 15 mg, or omeprazole 20 mg. All study methods and testing mirrored those in phase one.
Results: All 12 subjects completed the study protocol. All urine samples collected on day 5 were negative for THC in all subjects.
Discussion: Our results demonstrate that oral PPIs did not cause a false-positive THC using the THC One Step Marijuana Test Strip®. Limitations include small sample size, use of a single commercial immunoassay, and inability to confirm medication compliance. Further, large-scale research using other commercial urine immunoassays is warranted.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors