Detection of Cocaine and Major Metabolites in Rodent Bone Following Outdoor Decomposition after Chronic Cocaine Administration

Several challenges exist with quantification analysis of cocaine in post mortem samples in the field of forensic toxicology. Rapid half-life due to hydrolysis within hours of death is just one of these. While difficult to quantify in blood, urine and soft tissues, alternative matrices such as hair and bone can be useful in detecting chronic drug use in post-mortem toxicology cases. A robust extraction and cleanup method is required to efficiently extract drugs from complex matrices like bone, reach a target limit of detection and maintain instrument performance. The use of UPLC-MS/MS has allowed analysts to detect trace levels of analytes by following this method.