Background: Buprenorphine is used for medication-assisted treatment of opioid dependence.
Purpose: Monitoring of medication adherence involves testing of urine or oral fluid for the drug or its metabolite.
Methods: Quantitative results using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometer testing defined the excretion pattern of the drug and its metabolites.
Results: Frequency distribution curves of buprenorphine and norbuprenorphine describe the expected drug concentrations of patients on this medication.
Conclusion: Urine and oral fluid drug testing can be used to monitor adherence in this population.