NCJ Number
220891
Journal
Forensic Magazine Volume: 4 Issue: 5 Dated: October/November 2007 Pages: 20,22,24,25
Date Published
October 2007
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article reviews those issues related to the strain placed on today’s forensic toxicology labs for the purpose of assessing the need to improve and mapping out the new direction for forensic toxicology laboratories, known as LC/MS/MS.
Abstract
Popular belief and old assumptions, as well as a failure to rethink the policy-level issue of reconfirming results, threaten to hold back progress in the field of forensic toxicology. Despite these challenges, the transition from a popular but limited technology to a new more sensitive technology is happening, offering significant advancements in the field of forensic toxicology. The implementation of LC/MS/MS is a major change occurring in many labs across the country. The suitability of LC/MS/MS as the basis for testing methods in toxicology laboratories may be eye-opening for many in the forensic field. It is a standardized analytical technique already heavily used in other fields, such as pharmaceutical drug discovery and development. LC/MS/MS can detect lower concentrations of drugs than existing or traditional systems. It is said that LC/MS/MS is on the way to developing into a new “Platinum Standard” for toxicology testing.