A quantitative analysis of MDMA seized at New South Wales music festivals over the 2019/2020 season: Form, purity, dose and adulterants.
Drug and alcohol review February 1, 2022 Matthew J A O'Reilly, Christine A Harvey, Robin Auld et al.
Across 19 music festivals in New South Wales between October 2019 and March 2020, 302 substances suspected by police to contain MDMA were analyzed. 95% contained MDMA; the rest contained other drugs or no drug. Capsules were the most common form, followed by tablets, crystal, and powder. Median MDMA base-purity of non-tablet forms ranged from 73.5% to 75.0%. Median dose per tablet (116 mg) was higher than per capsule (68 mg), with wide variation: capsules ranged 14-146 mg, tablets 24-201 mg. Only 3.5% of tablets or capsules contained a high dose (130 mg or greater). Adulterants were found in 14.1% of MDMA substances, but only 1.6% contained a psychoactive adulterant, and none were dangerous.