Alcohol And Drug Dependence – Impulse Control Prescription Drug Abuse

The idea of using drugs (chemical substances) to treat disease conditions is a part of the treatment process in allopathic medical science. Increasing number of pharmaceutical companies and widespread information about disease conditions has increased the number of people who are going for self-medication. Continue reading

Propoxyphene detection

Propoxyphene is a potent analgesic that is one of the many drugs that are commonly abused by the recreational users. It produces nervous symptoms and gastrointestinal effects. They are potent in creating a strong physical dependence. Nausea, vomiting, head ache, constipation, light headedness, confusion and other constitutional symptoms are frequent among the Darvon users. Thus propoxyphene detection forms an important part of drug testing in the companies as pre employment screening.

Propoxyphene and its derivative norpropoxyphene are detected in urine whose cut off concentrations must be 300 ng/ ml to give a positive result. Propoxyphene screening urine is a simple procedure that can be performed using the drug testing kits. The kits come with test strips in a round vial with desiccant cap, package insert, and the instruction manual. In addition you would require a specimen collection cup and a timer. The urine sample must be collected in the sterile container and can be collected at any time during the day. If the sample contains visible suspensions, then it has to be centrifuged, and filtered to get the clear specimen. In cases of long term storage of specimens, freezing techniques can be used.

Propoxyphene urine screen is an in vitro diagnostic technique which is a qualitative analysis of the urine specimens that utilizes the lateral flow chromatography immunoassay. The urine specimen must be allowed to reach the room temperature prior to testing and the testing strips must be carefully taken out from the closed round vial and the cap must be put as soon as possible. Then dip the strip in to the test urine up to the indicated mark for 10 to 15 seconds. Remove the strip and place it on a flat non absorbent surface and wait for another 5 minutes for the lines to appear. Do not take too much time in reading the results.

Propoxyphene test urine if shows a positive result for the test, then a confirmatory procedure has to be done using the mass spectrometry and gas chromatography techniques. And the test strips must be discarded after use and the device should not be used if it had gone beyond the expiry date. The test strips should not be frozen.

Propoxyphene urinalysis would be positive even if it had not been abused. So a drug history must be elicited from the individual with the help of the previous records incase of pre employment testing.

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