Forensic Toxicology
Definition
The branch of toxicology that applies analytical chemistry, pharmacology and pathology to medico-legal questions, principally the detection, identification and quantitation of poisons, drugs and their metabolites in biological samples drawn at autopsy or from a living suspect or victim. The output is a written report admissible in an Indian court under Section 39 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023.
- Combines
- Analytical chemistry, pharmacology, pathology
- Detects
- Poisons, drugs and metabolites in biological samples
- Sample sources
- Autopsy specimens, living suspects or victims
- India admissibility
- Section 329, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 (govt scientific expert reports)
Common questions
Why does forensic toxicology need pharmacology and pathology alongside chemistry?+
Detecting a substance chemically is not enough; pharmacology explains how the dose and timing relate to the observed effects, and pathology relates any findings to the physical state of the body, together supporting a defensible interpretation rather than a bare detection result.
What distinguishes a toxicology report on a living subject from a postmortem one?+
A living-subject report typically addresses current impairment or exposure at the time of sampling, while a postmortem report must also account for redistribution of drugs after death and decomposition effects that can alter measured concentrations.
Related terms
- Ante-Mortem vs Post-Mortem Sample
- Antemortem samples are drawn from a living patient (most often blood, urine and gastric lavage at hospital admission); postmortem samples are collected...
- BSA Section 63 Certification
- The provision under the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023 that governs admission of expert opinion. A forensic toxicology report carries the signature of...
- Poison
- Paracelsus framed the working definition in 1538 as 'sola dosis facit venenum', the dose alone makes the poison. Any substance, including water...
- Presumptive vs Confirmatory Test
- A presumptive test (Reinsch for heavy metals, Marquis for opioids, Trinder for salicylates) is fast, cheap and class-specific, used to triage caseloads....
- Viscera
- The standard set of organs and fluids collected at a suspected poisoning autopsy in India: stomach with contents, a length of upper...