There is an epidemic of opioid misuse in the US and management of patients with SUD is difficult. Adherence to treatment programs and continued use of illicit (non-prescribed) drugs is problematic. Drug screens in current use simply are ineffective in monitoring patients and determining compliance with treatment. As well, these screens are not “real-time” (at the point of care and consultation), are expensive (hundreds of dollars) and do not detect wide potential variations in drug metabolism for individual patients.

Over an 18-month period, we will develop and validate a simple, non-invasive analytical technology, using serial urine and saliva samples from 100 consented patients (IRB Approval 22-1561, 10/19/22). These readily-available tests will be an aide to improving compliance with SUD management programs and for designing personalized, precision opioid treatment, based on individual patient pharmacokinetics. The use of this Raman spectroscopy-based, point-of-care technology during regularly-scheduled clinic visits, will facilitate “on the spot” decision making and treatment planning, as well as providing meaningful opportunities for counseling, and adjusting/reinforcing positive patient behaviors and lifestyle choices.