Ecstasy and suicide

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dc.contributor.authorFernando, T.
dc.contributor.authorGilbert, J.
dc.contributor.authorCarroll, C.
dc.contributor.authorByard, R.
dc.date.issued2012
dc.description.abstractDeaths due to the ring-derivative amphetamines are not common and are usually accidental involving dehydration and hyperthermia. Suicides from 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and related ring-derivative amphetamines overdose are rare. A 15-year-old female who had a history of depression and previous suicide attempts was found dead with a suicide note. Toxicology demonstrated lethal serum concentrations of MDMA (9.3 mg/L), with 34 mg/kg of MDMA in the liver, 2.4 mg/L in the urine, and 530 mg/kg in the stomach. The cause of death was MDMA toxicity, the manner suicide. While MDMA may be detected in victims in other drug-related or traumatic deaths, it is only rarely used in isolation in suicide, with a predominance in the 21- to 25-year-old range. Despite the rarity of such events, the possibility of a nonaccidental manner of death should be considered when high levels of MDMA and associated amphetamines are found at autopsy.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityTarini Fernando, John D. Gilbert, Christine M. Carroll, and Roger W. Byard
dc.identifier.citationJournal of Forensic Sciences, 2012; 57(4):1137-1139
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/j.1556-4029.2012.02107.x
dc.identifier.issn0022-1198
dc.identifier.issn1556-4029
dc.identifier.orcidByard, R. [0000-0002-0524-5942]
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2440/73430
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherAmer Soc Testing Materials
dc.rights© 2012 American Academy of Forensic Sciences
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1111/j.1556-4029.2012.02107.x
dc.subjectforensic science
dc.subjectecstasy
dc.subjectMDMA
dc.subjectdeath
dc.subjectsuicide
dc.subjecthyperthermia
dc.titleEcstasy and suicide
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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