Lead Contamination of Opium, Opium Tincture, and Methadone Oral Solution, in Iran

The present study is conducted with the aim to assess the lead contamination in opium tincture,methadone oral solution, and opium.

10 samples from each of the matters of opium tinctures, methadone oral solutions, and opium(provided by the Law Enforcement Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran) were collected. Then, an atomicabsorption spectrophotometer (AAS) was used to measure lead concentration in each of the samples. Datawere analyzed using the SPSS software. A P value of 0.05 or less was considered to be statistically significant(Two-tailed).

In this study, the amount of lead measured in all samples was equal or less than 5 parts per million(ppm) and the only exception was the lead level of 5.6 ppm in one of the opium tincture samples, which wasslightly higher than the standard lead level.

The results of the current study showed that lead was present in opium tincture, methadone oralsolution, and opium, but it was not in toxic levels. It is reasonable for opium derived medicinal products, butthe low levels of lead in opium may need to be addressed at different times in different regions of the country