γ-Hydroxybutyrate Concentrations in Pre- and Postmortem Blood and Urine

Abstract

With γ-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) becoming popular as a drug of abuse in the US and elsewhere (1), we are receiving increasing requests for the analytical determination of GHB in blood or urine in criminal investigations, especially in sexual assault cases. In a recent report of a fatal poisoning with GHB, the victim had a postmortem blood GHB concentration of 27 mg/L (2), and another three GHB-related fatalities were reported with postmortem blood GHB concentrations of 52–121 mg/L (3).