| Abstract: | Buprenorphine, commonly known by the trademark Temgesic, is one of the most popular drugs of abuse among the opioid-addicted young individuals in Iran. Temgesic, Bungesic, etc. are the most popular and important illicit opioid drugs in Tehran's illicit drugs black market, and are now among the most widely abused by opioid addicts. Because of this, counterfeiting of this drug has increased in Tehran. In this study, the qualitative analysis of counterfeit buprenorphine by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) demonstrates the presence of diacetylmorphine, acetylcodeine and pheniramine, as well as the absence of buprenorphine. In conclusion, due to the absence of quality control and difficulties in differentiating counterfeit buprenorphine from genuine products, the use of counterfeit buprenorphine leads the opioid abusers to health risks. |
