Alprazolam and Zolpidem in Skeletal Tissue of Decomposed Body Confirms Exposure

• Orfanidis, Amvrosios ^[1] ; Gika, Helen ^[1] ; Zaggelidou, Eleni ^[2] ; Mastrogianni, Orthodoxia ^[2] ; Raikos, Nikolaos ^[1]
  1. [1] Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

     Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

     Dimos Thessaloniki, Grecia

     
  2. [2] Laboratory of Forensic Service of Ministry of Justice of Thessalonik
• Localización: Journal of forensic sciences, ISSN-e 1556-4029, ISSN 0022-1198, Vol. 64, Nº. 2, 2019, págs. 643-646
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • In several medico-legal cases, bone samples analysis may provide the only source of toxicological information. This case study reports the analysis of a human bone specimen, belonging to a 46-year-old man, found 3 months after his death due to cervical–thoracic injuries in a motorcycle accident. Bone specimen was the only available material for toxicological analysis, among few skull hair and rotten skin. Analysis was performed by a newly developed and validated ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography–mass spectrome- try/mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) method, following simple and efficient sample pretreatment. The results were in accordance with the man’s medical record: Alprazolam and zolpidem were found at 2.2 and 5.4 ng/g of bone, respectively. Both these drugs were prescribed to the deceased.