Affiliation:
1. Toxicology Service, Institute of Forensic Sciences, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, C/San Francisco, s/n, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Abstract
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the use of nails to evaluate long-term and retrospective exposure to drugs of abuse and other substances of toxicological interest. Despite being a keratinized matrix like hair, nails and hair present differences that may affect drug incorporation and the interpretation of the results. This chapter describes the main characteristics of nails, as well as an update on the main mechanisms of drug incorporation into this keratinized matrix. Likewise, a review of the methodologies for the analysis of different drugs of abuse and psychoactive drugs in nails is included. Finally, the usefulness of nails for toxicological analysis is evaluated by comparing the disposition and concentrations of different drugs in hair and nails after single-dose administration and in cases of chronic exposure, and special considerations for nail result interpretation are detailed.
Publisher
Royal Society of Chemistry