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Academics in the University of Surrey's Department of Chemistry have developed a new diagnostic test for cocaine and benzoylecgonine (the main metabolite for cocaine) in urine and oral fluid. The research, which was conducted with collaborators Advion Ltd and Surrey Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, is published in  Analytical Methods  on 21 November. For the first time, the researchers have been able to prove that it is possible to confidently detect levels of cocaine and their metabolites using a compact 'mass spectrometer' (a chemical-based analytical technique). The test uses chromatography to separate cocaine from other compounds and can not only detect the presence of cocaine but also give quantitative data about the amount of cocaine a person has ingested. The test was found to offer a level of sensitivity below the cut-off level normally used for oral fluid drug testing, meaning that it can detect even low levels of cocaine in a person's urine or ...

The study found that teens who stopped smoking benefited from lower cravings for alcohol and drugs, and did as well as their peers who smoked in terms of treatment duration, 12-step participation, and global functioning (a numeric scale used by mental health professionals to rate how well clients respond to various psychological and social situations and difficulties). In contrast, young people in the study who smoked were discharged with significantly higher cravings for alcohol and drugs, which has been shown to increase the risk of relapse. Primarily because of smoking prohibitions on-site, 50 percent of participants in the study did not smoke during treatment. (Some requested and received nicotine patches , but the number was too few to evaluate the effects of this smoking-cessation aid). Those who smoked did so when on pass or attending local 12-step meetings outside of the treatment facility. "Our results suggest that quitting smoking is associated with lowered drug an...