A simple and reliable micellar liquid chromatographic method was developed for the simultaneous determination of 3 opiates (codeine, morphine, and thebaine) in serum, using direct injection and ultraviolet detection. The separation of the drugs was optimized on a C18 column, thermostatically controlled at 25 degrees C, by evaluating mobile phases containing sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and various modifiers (propanol, butanol, or pentanol). Adequate resolution of the opiates was obtained with a chemometrics approach, in which retention was modeled as a first step by using the retention factors for several mobile phases. Next, an optimization criterion that takes into account the position and shape of the chromatographic peaks was applied. The 3 opiates were totally resolved and determined in 12 min with the mobile phase 0.15M SDS-7% (v/v) butanol buffered at pH 7. The limits of detection for codeine and morphine were greatly improved by using fluorimetric detection. Repeatability and intermediate precision were tested for 3 different concentrations of the drugs, and the relative standard deviations were <0.8% for most of the assays. Finally, the method was successfully applied to the determination of morphine and codeine in serum samples.