Screening of Nyaope Use by Rapid Urine Testing

Abstract

Screening of drugs of abuse in urine has been routinely used for many years, but has not been validated in nyaope use which is a mixture of various groups of addictive drugs, stabilizers and other materials. One hundred current nyaope users were recruited from two large townships in the northern suburbs of Pretoria, South Africa and six nyaope samples were purchased from drug dealers in the same townships. Blood tests were evaluated to exclude liver and kidney dysfunctions. Fresh urine samples were collected from the participants with normal functions and relevant information was obtained by a standard questionnaire with the assistance of a nurse and a public health worker. Urine screening using AlereiCUPs tested 12 drugs of abuse with immediate results. Adulteration and urine quality checks were built-included as part of the test. Not all the constituents found in nyaope were detected in the urine. Codeine, hydro-codone, papaverine were negative and oxycodone was low positive in some samples. Cannabis was not always detected and depended on how nyaope was consumed. Paracetamol, caffeine, dextromethorphan were not tested. In conclusion, urine rapid screening test s for drugs of abuse (DOA) cannot differentiate between single drug use and nyaope (mixture) use and this has implications in treatment programmes.