Breain Ma'Ayteh

A previously unreported metabolite of high-dose morphine treatment, hydromorphone, has recently been discovered by a select few laboratories. By John Constantine, BS, Andrea Terrell, PhD, Robert Foery, PhD, DABCC/TC and Breain Ma'Ayteh, MA Recently, a toxicologist at our laboratory received a frantic phone call from a patient participating in high-dose morphine therapy. The reason for his call? He’d just been discharged from his pain clinic. The reason for his dismissal?

To prevent drug diversion and get an accurate picture of drug usage, drug monitoring in a clinical pain management practice must test for patient compliance within specified therapeutic ranges. By Dr. Michael Evans, PhD, Breain Ma'Ayteh, MA and John Constantine, BS In the last few decades, pain management has pushed itself to the forefront of the healthcare industry, with approximately fifty million Americans suffering from chronic pain (The Pain Survey, Louis Harris & Associates, 1999).