Evaluation of an electrochemical sensor and comparison with spectroscopic approaches as used today in practice for harm reduction in a festival setting-A case study: Analysis of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine samples.
Eric Deconinck, Marie A Polet, Michaël Canfyn, Céline Duchateau, Kris De Braekeleer, Robin van Echelpoel, Karolien de Wael, Lies Gremeaux, Maarten Degreef, Margot Balcaen
Drug Testing and Analysis September 1, 2024 DOI: 10.1002/dta.3625 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Case study Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | MDMA samples |
| Interventions | Raman spectroscopy electrochemical sensor approach |
| Topics | MDMA |
| Keywords | 3,4‐Methylenedioxymethamphetamine MDMA Atr–nir Drug checking Electrochemical detection Mobile detection approaches |
| Key findings | Mid-infrared spectroscopy and an electrochemical sensor approach were the most effective portable methods for drug checking MDMA at events, with the electrochemical method providing direct percentage quantification and MIR enabling broader substance screening. |
Abstract
More and more countries and organisations emphasise the value of harm reduction measures in the context of illicit drug use and abuse. One of these measures is drug checking, a preventive action that can represent a quick win by tailored consultation on the risks of substance use upon analytical screening of a submitted sample. Unlike drop-in centres that operate within a fixed setting, enabling drug checking in a harm reduction context at events requires portable, easy to use analytical approaches, operated by personnel with limited knowledge of analytical chemistry. In this case study, four different approaches were compared for the characterisation of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine samples and this in the way the approaches would be applied today in an event context. The four approaches are mid-infrared (MIR), near-infrared, and Raman spectroscopy, which are today used in drug checking context in Belgium, as well as an electrochemical sensor approach initially developed in the context of law enforcement at ports. The MIR and the electrochemical approach came out best, with the latter allowing for a direct straightforward analysis of the percentage 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (as base equivalent) in the samples. However, MIR has the advantage that, in a broader drug checking context, it allows to screen for several molecules and so is able to identify unexpected active components or at least the group to which such components belong. The latter is also an important advantage in the context of the growing emergence of new psychotropic substances.
Comparable studies
Other case reports and case series on MDMA, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| 'Eve' and 'Ecstasy'. A report of five deaths associated with the use of MDEA and MDMA Individuals whose deaths were associated with MDMA or MDEA use | 1987 | Case series | n = 5 |
| Pathology of deaths associated with "ecstasy" and "eve" misuse. Young white men aged 20 to 25 who died after using ring-substituted amphetamines (MDMA... | 1996 | Case series | n = 7 |
| 'Eve' and 'Ecstasy' Individuals who died after using MDMA or MDEA | 1987 | Case series | n = 5 |
| A Method of Conducting Therapeutic Sessions with MDMA Clients with clear therapeutic purpose, excluding those with serious functional... | 1998 | Case study | n = 2 |
| Diversity of Psychopathology Associated with use of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (‘Ecstasy’) Psychiatric patients presenting between 1990 and 1992 whose symptoms developed in the... | 1994 | Case series | n = 13 |