Flushing, Pale-Colored Urines, and False Negatives Urinalysis of Narcotic Addicts

Abstract

Therapeutic programs for drug dependence usually include analysis of urine specimens to determine the presence or absence of addicting drugs. The information obtained from this screening aids in evaluating the degree of success of rehabilitation programs. The usefulness of urine screening depends on the accuracy of the positive and negative results reported; false-positive and false-negative determinations can occur. The applicability of several methods of drug analysis (Dole et al., 1966; Cochin, 1966; Jaffe and Kirkpatrick, 1966; Mule, 1969) for routine urine screening are being studied in the Lake Pontchartrain Laboratories of Gulf South Research Institute. A recent report by Montalvo and collaborators (1970) describes accumulation of false-negative data for alkaloids using the method of Dole (1966).