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BMC veterinary research2016; 12; 84; doi: 10.1186/s12917-016-0709-5

Long-term monitoring of opioid, sedative and anti-inflammatory drugs in horse hair using a selective and sensitive LC-MS/MS procedure.

Abstract: Compared to blood or urine, drugs can be detected for much longer periods in the long hair of horses. The aim of this study was to establish and validate a highly sensitive liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for the detection and quantification of frequently prescribed opioids, sedatives and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents in the mane and tail hair of horses. Based on an average growth rate of about 2 cm per month, times of administration reported by horse owners or veterinary physicians were related to drug localizations in hair. Hair samples were collected from ten horses that received drug treatments and analyzed in segments of 2, 4 or 6 cm in length. Hair segments were decontaminated, cut into fragments and methanol-extracted under sonication. The extracts were analyzed by LC-MS/MS for 13 commonly used drugs using the validated procedure. Deuterated analogs were included as internal standards. Results: Analytes were detected in hair samples with a length of up to 70 cm. Fourteen out of 16 hair samples were positive for at least one of the tested drugs. Segmentation allowed for time-resolved monitoring of periods of 1 to 3 months of drug administration. Concentrations in dark hair reached a maximum of 4.0 pg/mg for butorphanol, 6.0 pg/mg for tramadol, 1.4 pg/mg for morphine, 1.8 pg/mg for detomidine, 1.2 pg/mg for acepromazine, 39 pg/mg for flunixin, 5.0 pg/mg for firocoxib, and 3'600 pg/mg for phenylbutazone. Only trace amounts of meloxicam were detected. Drug detection correlated well with the reported period of medical treatment. No analytes were detected in the light-colored mane and tail hair samples from one horse despite preceding administrations of acepromazine and phenylbutazone. Conclusions: This study describes a sensitive and selective technique suitable for the validated detection and quantification of frequently prescribed veterinary drugs in horse hair. The segmental method can be applied for time-resolved long-term retrospective drug monitoring, for example in prepurchase examinations of horses as drug detection in hair can prove preceding medical treatments.
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Publication Date: 2016-06-01 PubMed ID: 27250835PubMed Central: PMC4888615DOI: 10.1186/s12917-016-0709-5Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article
  • Validation Study

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research aimed to develop and affirm an effective method using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to detect common veterinary drugs like opioids, sedatives and anti-inflammatory medications in horse hair. The study resulted in a successful technique which can be used for long-term monitoring of these drugs, providing an insightful retrospective of a horse’s medical treatment history.

Research Method for Drug Detection

  • The study was conducted by collecting hair samples from ten horses that had received drug treatments. These tests targeted 13 frequently used drugs.
  • The hair samples were segregated into lengths of 2, 4 or 6 cm to identify specific times of drug administration based on an average hair growth rate of about 2 cm per month.
  • To extract the drugs, the hair samples were first decontaminated, then cut into fragments and methanol-extracted under sonication.
  • They used the LC-MS/MS procedure that had been validated for the analysis of the drug extracts.
  • The researchers also used deuterated analogs as internal standards to aid in their drug analysis.

Research Findings

  • They found that the drugs can be detected in hair samples up to a length of 70 cm making it possible to monitor a period ranging from 1 to 3 months of drug administration.
  • Drug concentrations in dark hair reached maximum values for a range of drugs, with phenylbutazone having the highest concentration of 3’600 pg/mg.
  • Meloxicam, however, was only detected in trace amounts.
  • The detection of the drugs correlated well with the reported period of medical treatment, confirming the effectiveness of the method developed.
  • However, for one horse with light-colored mane and tail hair, no analytes were detected in the hair samples despite preceding administrations of acepromazine and phenylbutazone.

Conclusions of the Research

  • This study successfully developed a sensitive and selective technique for detecting and quantifying frequently used veterinary drugs in horse hair.
  • Moreover, the segmented approach of this method enables time-specific, long-term monitoring of these drugs, providing a record of preceding medical treatments administered to horses.
  • This can potentially aid in circumstances such as prepurchase examinations of horses where drug history can be essential to inform decisions.

Cite This Article

APA
Madry MM, Spycher BS, Kupper J, Fuerst A, Baumgartner MR, Kraemer T, Naegeli H. (2016). Long-term monitoring of opioid, sedative and anti-inflammatory drugs in horse hair using a selective and sensitive LC-MS/MS procedure. BMC Vet Res, 12, 84. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-016-0709-5

Publication

BMC veterinary research
ISSN: 1746-6148
NlmUniqueID: 101249759
Country: England
Language: English
Volume: 12
Pages: 84
PII: 84

Researcher Affiliations

Madry, Milena M
  • Zurich Institute of Forensic Medicine, Center for Forensic Hair Analytics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. milena.madry@irm.uzh.ch.
Spycher, Barbara S
  • Zurich Institute of Forensic Medicine, Center for Forensic Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Kupper, Jacqueline
  • Institute of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Fuerst, Anton
  • Clinic of Veterinary Surgery, Department of Large Animal Surgery, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Baumgartner, Markus R
  • Zurich Institute of Forensic Medicine, Center for Forensic Hair Analytics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Kraemer, Thomas
  • Zurich Institute of Forensic Medicine, Center for Forensic Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Naegeli, Hanspeter
  • Institute of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. hanspeter.naegeli@vetpharm.uzh.ch.

MeSH Terms

  • Analgesics, Opioid / analysis
  • Analgesics, Opioid / pharmacokinetics
  • Animals
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / analysis
  • Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / pharmacokinetics
  • Chromatography, Liquid / veterinary
  • Hair / chemistry
  • Horses
  • Hypnotics and Sedatives / analysis
  • Hypnotics and Sedatives / pharmacokinetics
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Tandem Mass Spectrometry / veterinary

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Citations

This article has been cited 2 times.
  1. Kim YG, Hwang J, Choi H, Lee S. Development of a Column-Switching HPLC-MS/MS Method and Clinical Application for Determination of Ethyl Glucuronide in Hair in Conjunction with AUDIT for Detecting High-Risk Alcohol Consumption. Pharmaceutics 2018 Jul 4;10(3).
    doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics10030084pubmed: 29973564google scholar: lookup
  2. Madry MM, Spycher BS, Kupper J, Fuerst A, Baumgartner MR, Kraemer T, Naegeli H. Erratum to: Long-term monitoring of opioid, sedative and anti-inflammatory drugs in horse hair using a selective and sensitive LC-MS/MS procedure. BMC Vet Res 2016 Jun 22;12(1):122.
    doi: 10.1186/s12917-016-0746-0pubmed: 27334708google scholar: lookup
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