Which drug can be absorbed through the skin?

Which drug can be absorbed through the skin?

• A. Marijuana
• B. Cocaine
• C. Heroin
• D. LSD

Answer: (D)

Skin absorption depends on how easily a drug can cross the skin barrier, which is largely about lipid solubility and molecular size. LSD is extremely lipid-soluble and potent, so it can pass through the skin when there’s contact with it (for example, on blotter paper pressed to the skin). This makes skin absorption a plausible route for LSD. The other drugs listed are not typically absorbed through the skin in ordinary exposure—marijuana is usually inhaled or ingested, while cocaine and heroin are commonly used by injection, snorting, or smoking rather than through the skin.

Skin absorption depends on how easily a drug can cross the skin barrier, which is largely about lipid solubility and molecular size. LSD is extremely lipid-soluble and potent, so it can pass through the skin when there’s contact with it (for example, on blotter paper pressed to the skin). This makes skin absorption a plausible route for LSD. The other drugs listed are not typically absorbed through the skin in ordinary exposure—marijuana is usually inhaled or ingested, while cocaine and heroin are commonly used by injection, snorting, or smoking rather than through the skin.