Am J Psychiatry 1985; 142:950-953
Copyright © 1985 by American Psychiatric Association
Hair analysis for detection of phencyclidine in newly admitted psychiatric patients
JJ Sramek, WA Baumgartner, JA Tallos, TN Ahrens, JF Heiser and WH Blahd
The authors implemented a new procedure for analyzing phencyclidine (PCP)
content in hair. They compare the results of analyses of hair with results
of analyses of blood and urine in 47 patients newly hospitalized with acute
psychiatric illness. Hair analysis identified 11 patients who had used PCP,
and blood and urine analyses did not identify any among the sample
population. In three patients, the results of hair analysis aided in
establishing a diagnosis of PCP intoxication. The authors discuss
interpretations of their findings and psychiatric applications of this new
technique.
