Hair analysis and self-report of methamphetamine use by methamphetamine dependent individuals

The questions of whether the dose of drug that is consumed corresponds to drug concentration levels in hair and how results of hair analyses can be interpreted are still debated. The aim of this study was to investigate (1) whether there is a correlation between doses of Methamphetamine (MA) use and MA concentration levels in hair and (2) whether results of hair analyses can be used to estimate dose, frequency, and patterns of MA use. In this study, segmental hair analysis was performed through consecutive 1 cm as well as 1–4 cm (=3 cm) segmental hair lengths. MA dependent individuals (n = 9) provided information on doses (0.25–4 g/day) of MA use as well as the frequency of MA use. The concentrations of MA and its metabolite amphetamine (AP) in hair were determined using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test was performed to evaluate whether MA and AP concentrations in consecutive 1 cm length segmental hair were consistent with the history of MA use. The cumulative doses of MA use calculated from the daily dose and the frequency during 1–4 months were well correlated to the concentrations of MA and AP in 1–4 cm segmental hair length (correlation coefficient, r = 0.87 for MA and r = 0.77 for AP). The results from this study show the patterns and histories of MA use from MA dependent individuals and could assist in the interpretation of hair results in forensic toxicology as well as in rehabilitation and treatment programs.