Chapter 6

Forensic Toxicology

Forensic toxicologists use analytical chemistry to detect drugs and poisons in body fluids and tissues.  Knowledge of how drugs move through our bodies allows them to know what substances were ingested, if and how they contributed to the death, and estimate how much time elapsed from the time of ingestion to the fatal outcome.  These same principles are used to evaluate blood alcohol concentrations that are critical in DUI (driving while intoxicated) cases. 

This chapter provides an overview of how drugs move through the body, what tools and techniques toxicologist employ in their work, what samples are collected during a typical autopsy.  We will see how the same concepts apply to blood and breath alcohol measurements. 

Learning Objectives

6.1 Understand basic terminology associated with dosing 

6.2 Describe the modes of ingestion and understand why this is important 

6.3 Recognize the fundamentals of the ADME pathway 

6.4 Describe typical samples collected at autopsy 

6.5 Recognize common analytical methods used in forensic toxicology 

6.6 Extend concepts learned to blood and breath alcohol measurement