Forensic Toxicology

The application of toxicology to the field of law is known as forensic toxicology. The human fascination with poisons, their effects on living organisms, discovery in human remains, and the significance of toxicology in court procedures have all contributed to the discipline's continued growth. At this time, the three major subcategories of the discipline are postmortem toxicology, forensic drug testing, and human performance toxicology. Toxicology and other fields such as analytical chemistry, pharmacology, and clinical chemistry are used in forensic toxicology to aid medical and legal investigations of death, poisoning, and drug use. The major interest in forensic toxicology is the acquisition and interpretation of results, not the legal conclusion of the toxicological study or the technology used. Toxicological testing can be performed on a variety of substances. Any evidence acquired at a crime scene that may narrow the search, such as pill bottles, powders, trace residue, and any available chemicals, must be considered by a forensic toxicologist.