El Paso 1 Of 34 Cities Not Tested For Pharmaceuticals In Water

(AP) — At least one pharmaceutical was detected in tests of treated drinking water supplies for 24 major metropolitan areas, according to an Associated Press survey of 62 major water providers and data obtained from independent researchers.

Only 28 tested drinking water. Three of those said results were negative; Dallas says tests were conducted but results are not yet available. Thirty-four locations said no testing was conducted.

Test protocols varied widely. Some researchers looked only for one pharmaceutical or two; others looked for many.

Some water systems said tests had been negative, but the AP found independent research showing otherwise. Both prescription and non-prescription drugs were detected.

Because coffee and tobacco are so widely used, researchers say their byproducts are good indicators of the presence of pharmaceuticals. Thus, they routinely test for, and often find, both caffeine and nicotine’s metabolite cotinine more frequently than other drugs.

Here’s the list of metropolitan areas, grouped by categories – those with positive test results, including the number of pharmaceuticals detected and some examples of specific drugs found, locations where tests were negative, locations where tests were not conducted and a location with pending results:

TESTED POSITIVE

Arlington, Texas: 1 (unspecified pharmaceutical) Atlanta: 3 (acetaminophen, caffeine and cotinine) Cincinnati: 1 (caffeine) Columbus, Ohio: 5 (azithromycin, roxithromycin, tylosin, virginiamycin and caffeine) Concord, Calif.: 2 (meprobamate and sulfamethoxazole) Denver: (unspecified antibiotics) Detroit: (unspecified drugs) Indianapolis: 1 (caffeine) Las Vegas: 3 (carbamazepine, meprobamate and phenytoin) Long Beach, Calif.: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin) Los Angeles: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin) Louisville, Ky.: 3 (caffeine, carbamazepine and phenytoin) Milwaukee: 1 (cotinine) Minneapolis: 1 (caffeine) New Orleans: 3 (clofibric acid, estrone and naproxen) Northern New Jersey: 7 (caffeine, carbamazepine, codeine, cotinine, dehydronifedipine, diphenhydramine and sulfathiazole) Philadelphia: 56 (including amoxicillin, azithromycin, carbamazepine, diclofenac, prednisone and tetracycline) Portland, Ore.: 4 (acetaminophen, caffeine, ibuprofen and sulfamethoxazole) Riverside County, Calif.: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin) San Diego: 3 (ibuprofen, meprobamate and phenytoin) San Francisco: 1 (estradiol) Southern California: 2 (meprobamate and phenytoin) Tucson, Ariz.: 3 (carbamazepine, dehydronifedipine and sulfamethoxazole) Washington, D.C.: 6 (carbamazepine, caffeine, ibuprofen, monensin, naproxen and sulfamethoxazole)

TESTED NEGATIVE

Albuquerque, N.M.: tests negative Austin, Texas: tests negative Virginia Beach, Va.: tests negative

DID NOT TEST

Baltimore: no testing Birmingham, Ala.: no testing Boston: no testing Charlotte, N.C.: no testing Chicago: no testing Cleveland: no testing Colorado Springs, Colo.: no testing El Paso, Texas: no testing Fairfax, Va.: no testing Fort Worth, Texas: no testing Fresno, Calif.: no testing Honolulu: no testing Houston: no testing Jacksonville, Fla.: no testing Kansas City, Mo.: no testing Memphis, Tenn.: no testing Mesa, Ariz.: no testing Miami: no testing Nashville, Tenn.: no testing New York City: no testing Oakland, Calif.: no testing Oklahoma City: no testing Omaha, Neb.: no testing Orlando, Fla.: no testing Phoenix: no testing Sacramento, Calif.: no testing San Antonio: no testing Prince George’s and Montgomery counties, Md.: no testing San Jose, Calif.: no testing Santa Clara, Calif.: no testing Seattle: no testing Suffolk County, N.Y.: no testing Tulsa, Okla.: no testing Wichita, Kan.: no testing

TESTED, RESULTS PENDING

Dallas: results pending

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)