A review of pretreatment and analytical techniques for amphetamine type stimulants in complex samples

Abstract

Amphetamine-type stimulants (ATSs) are among the most widely abused drugs globally, posing serious threats to public health through addiction, physical and psychological harm, and associated social problems such as increased crime rates. Effective clinical management of ATSs overdose and abuse monitoring demand analytical methods that are not only sensitive, accurate, but also rapid and adaptable to real‑world settings. However, conventional detection approaches often face challenges including limited sensitivity, prolonged analysis time, insufficient selectivity in complex matrices, and poor suitability for on‑site or point‑of‑care testing. These limitations underscore the urgent need for advanced analytical strategies that can overcome such hurdles. This review comprehensively summarizes progress since 2017 in sample pretreatment and detection techniques for ATSs. It covers established methods such as ultrasonic‑assisted extraction and liquid‑liquid extraction, as well as emerging approaches including solid‑phase microextraction and liquid-phase microextraction, with a particular focus on the role of innovative materials-such as multi‑walled carbon nanotubes and metal‑organic frameworks-in improving extraction efficiency and analytical performance. For detection, chromatographic-based methods are discussed, alongside the rapidly evolving field of high-resolution mass spectrometry technology. Finally, the review critically compares the advantages and limitations of current techniques and outlines promising directions for future development.