In the past decade there has been a significant increase in the popularity of synthetic cathinones in the illegal drug market. They have been easily available from Internet-based vendors as well as at "head shops" and "smart shops". The recent prominence of synthetic cathinones can be attributed to their stimulatory properties similar to those of amphetamines. This paper provides a review on th...

We developed a test that compares sequential measurements of a biomarker against previous readings performed on the same individual. A probability mass function expresses prior information on interindividual variations of intraindividual parameters. Then, the model progressively integrates new readings to more accurately quantify the characteristics of the individual. This Bayesian framework ge...

The identification of general unknown poisons in complex biological materials like postmortem blood and tissue is a great challenge for the forensic toxicologist. Therefore, a screening procedure utilizing a semi-automatic work-up with an ASPEC system was developed. A broad range of different compounds can be isolated by using non-selective and generally applicable organic polymeric sorbents su...

In forensic toxicology, alternative matrices and sampling sites are required for a correlation of antemortem postmortem concentrations with the least possible error. Postmortem redistribution phenomena biochemical changes inherent to these processes possible, represent interferences in analyses. This study aimed perform bibliographic review through Pubmed database within 10-year period time, us...

The use of alternative specimens in the field of toxicology was first described in 1979, when hair analysis was used to document chronic drug exposure. Since then, the use of these 'alternative' samples has gained tremendous importance in forensic toxicology, as well as in clinic toxicology, doping control and workplace drug testing. It is not surprising, therefore, that a large number of paper...

The pathway to developing routine tools investigate evidence in forensic laboratories is a challenging and lengthy process [...]