forensi toxicology

Question 1

US manufacturers enough sedatives and antidepressants each year to provide every man, woman, and child with how many pills

Answer 1

about 40

Question 2

most heavily abused drug in western countries

Answer 2

ethyl alcohol

Question 3

Primary objective of forensic toxicology

Answer 3

detect and isolate drugs in the body

Question 4

toxicologist

Answer 4

detects and identifies drugs and poisons in tissues, fluids, and organs

Question 5

where do toxicologists work

Answer 5

crime labs, medical examiners offices, hospital labs, and health facilities

Question 6

what is the role of the forensic toxicologist limited to

Answer 6

violations of criminal law (can vary throughout US)

Question 7

what drug do forensic toxicologists mainly deal with

Answer 7

alcohol

Question 8

what % of traffic deaths are related to alcohol

Answer 8

40% (17.5k)

Question 9

how many injuries per year regard alcohol

Answer 9

2 million+

Question 10

metabolism

Answer 10

substances in the body that are broken down for easier elimination

Question 11

3 basic steps of metabolism

Answer 11

absorption
distribution
elimination

Question 12

what happens during absorption

Answer 12

Appears in blood within minutes of consumption
Slowly increases in concentration
Upon completion: distributed uniformly throughout the watery portions of the body (⅔ of body volume)
Max BAC is reached when post-absorption begins until levels reach zero

Question 13

absorption time determined by

Answer 13

Time taken to consume
Alcohol content
Amount consumed
Quantity and type of food in stomach

Question 14

beer
empty stomach
absorption?

Answer 14

Beer = slower absorption
Empty stomach = faster absorption

Question 15

elimination

Answer 15

happens as alcohol circulates the blood stream

Question 16

oxidation

Answer 16

combines with oxygen to produce CO2 and water

Alcohol dehydrogenase converts it to acetaldehyde and acetic acid, then to CO2 and H2O

Question 17

where does oxidation happen

Answer 17

almost entirely in liver

Question 18

excretion

Answer 18

leaves the body unchanged (sweat, breath, urine)

Question 19

is the amount of alcohol exhaled in breath directly or inversely proportional to the concentration in blood?

Answer 19

directly

Question 20

how is blood alcohol measured in the circulatory system

Answer 20

by analyzing blood or measuring breath content

Question 21

artery

Answer 21

carries blood away from the heart

Question 22

vein

Answer 22

carries blood to the heart

Question 23

capillary

Answer 23

connects arteries and veins
Site of material/gas exchange

Question 24

where is alcohol ingested

Answer 24

through mouth

Question 25

ingestion and distribution steps

Answer 25

ingested Moves down esophagus into stomach Enters blood through walls of small intestine Goes to liver where enzymes break it down Alcoholic blood leaves liver and enters heart Right atrium, then right ventricle (Little O2 and lots of O2) Enters lungs through pulmonary artery

Question 26

aeration

Answer 26

replenishes oxygen

Question 27

how much is absorbed into portal vein

Answer 27

20%

Question 28

Reticulation and absorption

Answer 28

CO2 and alcohol expelled through the nose and mouth Alveoli replenished with fresh air Oxygenated blood to left atrium, then left ventricle Concentration of alcohol in arterial blood is higher than in venous blood, leads to rapid diffusion into body tissues

Question 29

alveoli

Answer 29

sacks that allow for gas exchange

Question 30

how much higher is arterial BAC than venous BAC? how does this benefit the suspect

Answer 30

41% suspect is benefited because the BAC is higher in arteries

Question 31

why is breath testing so popular

Answer 31

rapid

Question 32

breath tester

Answer 32

collects and measures alcohol in alveolar breath

Question 33

who created breath tester and when

Answer 33

RF Borkenstein in 1954

Question 34

what was the breath tester replaced by

Answer 34

fuel cell detector

Question 35

Fuel cell detector

Answer 35

a chemical reaction with alcohol that produces electricity

Question 36

how fuel cell detector works

Answer 36

Subject blows into mouthpiece Cylinder captures alveolar breath Breath passes into glass chamber containing potassium dichromate and oxidized into acetic acid, dichromate destroyed Amount of destruction → blood alcohol reading

Question 37

field sobriety testing

Answer 37

a series of psychophysical tests and a preliminary breath test

Question 38

types of field sobriety tests

Answer 38

Horizontal gaze nystagmus Walk and turn One leg stand

Question 39

what is believed to be an unsafe BAC

Answer 39

.15

Question 40

what is unsafe BAC according to law

Answer 40

.08

Question 41

per se law

Answer 41

any person meeting or exceeding a defined level is intoxicated

Question 42

how much more likely is a person with a .08 BAC to get in an accident

Answer 42

4x

Question 43

self incrimination

Answer 43

being forced to admit your own guilt

Question 44

example of self incrimination

Answer 44

pleading the fifth

Question 45

implied consent law

Answer 45

prevents a person from refusing to take the field sobriety test

Question 46

clues to toxic substances

Answer 46

Victim’s symptoms Postmortem pathology Victim’s personal things Nearby empty containers

Question 47

challenges in toxicology

Answer 47

Use general screening tests Decreased concentration of drug Few substances leave the body in the same state (heroin) Identify drug toxicity

Question 48

what are 90% of drugs in labs

Answer 48

alc weed coke

Question 49

Analytical scheme

Answer 49

technique that detects, isolates, and identifies a toxic substance

Question 50

acidic drugs

Answer 50

aspirin (salicylic acid), barbiturates

Question 51

basic drugs

Answer 51

PCP, cocaine, amphetamines

Question 52

2 step approach

Answer 52

screening and confirmation

Question 53

screening test

Answer 53

tells you if specimen contains a drug

Question 54

screening test tools

Answer 54

Thin layer chromatography, gas chromatography, immunoassay

Question 55

confirmation test

Answer 55

provides specific id for a substance

Question 56

confirmation test tools

Answer 56

Mass spectroscopy, gas chromatography

Question 57

drugs detected in living people where

Answer 57

blood and urine

Question 58

how long are drugs in blood

Answer 58

24 hrs

Question 59

how long are drugs in urine

Answer 59

72 hours

Question 60

how long are drugs in hair

Answer 60

weeks months years

Question 61

how much does hair grow per month

Answer 61

1 cm

Question 62

why is hair beneficial for drug use

Answer 62

shows long term use

Question 63

heavy metals

Answer 63

arsenic bismuth mercury thallium

Question 64

Reinsch test

Answer 64

dissolve the fluid in HCl, add copper strip Dark silver result means positive

Question 65

carbon monoxide is absorbed by

Answer 65

RBC

Question 66

CO2 combines with _ to form

Answer 66

hemoglobin → carboxyhemoglobin

Question 67

Lack of O2 to tissues causes

Answer 67

asphyxiation and usually death

Question 68

Spectrophotometric test

Answer 68

measures amt of carboxyhemoglobin to amt of oxyhemoglobin

Question 69

fatal carboxyhemoglobin to amt of oxyhemoglobin

Answer 69

50-60%: fatal Combined with alcohol: 35-40% Chainsmokers: 8-10%

Question 70

Significance of Toxicological Findings

Answer 70

Must asses influence on individual behavior Interpretation of findings can be difficult because of how different people react to drugs Benefit of living people: can talk with the toxicologist and police Benefit of deceased people: use their tissues and organs Variety of factors: age, physical condition, tolerance Look for additive effects Urine analysis: poor indicator of behavior, remains in a person’s system longer than their symptoms would persist