Short-column gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry for the detection of underivatized anabolic steroids in urine.

Short-column (3.5 m) gas chromatography (GC)/tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) has been investigated for the detection of structurally related, underivatized anabolic steroids in urine. The approach described here demonstrates the ability to rapidly and qualitatively detect underivatized anabolic steroids in spiked urine matrices. In this approach, underivatized steroids are determined using a short-column GC separation, ionized by positive ion chemical ionization, and detected by selected reaction monitoring MS/MS. This approach permits positive identification of underivatized anabolic steroids based on retention time and the production of characteristic product ions. Preliminary detection limits studies in spiked urine samples showed quantitative results between 2 and 40 ng steroid per milliliter of uterine. The potential advantages of this approach compared to present screening methods based on conventional (30 m) GC/MS are its rapidity and selectivity. Reliable qualitative identification can be performed with a short-column GC/MS/MS analysis of less than 6 min with a reduction in sample preparation time due to the elimination of the derivatization step.