Introduction

Forensic toxicology is the use of toxicology and disciplines such as analytical chemistry, pharmacology and clinical chemistry to aid medical or legal investigation of death, poisoning, and drug use. The primary concern for forensic toxicology is not the legal outcome of the toxicological investigation or the technology utilized, but rather the obtainment and interpretation of results. Forensic toxicology is a broad science that integrates principles and practices about toxicology and legal aspects, which occur in conjunction with medico legal instances as with homicide, suicide, road traffic and other types of accident and/or disasters.

Nowadays, the practitioners of forensic toxicology science have to deal with three chief sections, namely: postmortem, drug testing, and human performance forensic toxicology. Postmortem forensic toxicology is dealing mostly with investigation of abnormal deaths, or when drug intoxication incidence is assumed as a cause of death and no abnormal findings were detected during autopsy. Forensics, by definition, is the use of science within the legal system to interpret a medical finding.

Clinical Toxicology

In clinical toxicology, the end user is a physician using the findings to treat and care for an intoxicated or poisoned patient, while in forensic toxicology, the end user can be a physician, a non-medical professional such as a lawyer, an employee, or police officer using the results to interpret a cause of death, employment eligibility, or compliance with workforce laws and terms. Hence, based on such situation the toxicologist may be a Physician, pharmacist, scientist, laboratory specialist or technician

The most common sample types used by forensic toxicologists are blood, urine, and hair, as these can be easily collected in a non-invasive manner and provide a great deal of information regarding both the historical and present influence of various substances. Post-mortem sample collection also frequently includes an examination of the contents of the gastrointestinal tract, which is likely to contain evidence of consumed drugs or toxins that are yet to be digested. The liver, spleen, vitreous of the eye, and brain may also hold valuable information regarding the cause of death.

Sampling

Blood samples are useful for determining whether an individual was under the influence of any drugs or toxins at the time when the sample was collected, such as when suspected of driving while under the influence of alcohol. Blood is considered to be among the most important of all samples in forensic toxicology, and it is recommended that samples be collected from both the heart and an extremity in post-mortem cases, as trauma or the diffusion of drugs through tissue may contaminate the sample.

Urine samples provide strong evidence of the past consumption of many drugs and other compounds, a majority of which will linger in the urine for longer than in blood due to the gradual rate at which they are metabolized. Hair is useful when determining long-term exposure and even the date of exposure to toxins or drugs, as traces of metabolites are incorporated into the hair through the follicles as it grows. A wide variety of analytical methods are utilized to determine the presence of toxins in an individual’s body.

The Journal of “Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology Research” is using Editorial Tracking System to maintain quality and transparency to the author in the peer-review process. Review processing will be performed by the editorial board members of the Journal of “Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology Research” or by Reviewers (outside experts in the field). Two independent reviewer’s approval (Minimum reviewer’s approval) followed by editor approval is obligatory for acceptance of any manuscript excluding an editorial.

Regards

Mary Wilson

Editorial office

Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology Research

E-mail: pharmatoxicol@eclinicalsci.com