Determination of the frequency of synthetic cannabinoids usage in probationers

As in the rest of the world, there is a rapid increase in the popularity of synthetic cannabinoid use among adults and adolescents in our country. These products are sold on the internet under the various names such as "Spice, K2, Super Nova, Yucatan Fire, Diamond and Cloud 9" in worldwide and ''Bonzai, Jamaica and Jamaica Gold" in our country. To avoid legal regulations, there are "Incense", "not for human use" or "herbal therapy" labels on the packages. Synthetic cannabinoids functionally resemble tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and mimic the effects of marijuana when smoked like cigarettes. However, most of these products are stronger than THC and create a greater health risk. In this study; 500 urine samples without patient informations collected which were analyzed and resulted negative at Ege University Institute of Substance Addiction, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Sciences (BATI). Synthetic cannabinoid screening was performed by LC-MS / MS (Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometer) in the Forensic Toxicology Laboratory of Cukurova University Faculty of Medicine using liquid-liquid extraction method. Of the 500 urine samples studied, 72 (14.4%) were positive. According to these results, pre-screening tests were insufficient and urine samples should be confirmed by advanced chromatographic methods. In this study, a sensitive analytical method for the detection of synthetic cannabinoids and their metabolites in forensic toxicology laboratories has been developed in order to avoid false negative results. Keywords: Forensic Toxicology Laboratory, LC-MS/MS, Probationers, Synthetic Cannabinoids