Urine| Hair Follicle | Oral Fluid | Blood | ETG
Hair testing is increasingly acknowledged as a robust method for identifying drug and alcohol usage. Hair registers a prolonged history of substance consumption by capturing markers in the fibers of its growing strands. When gathered near the scalp, hair can reveal a detection timeline of up to roughly 3 months for alcohol and various drugs. Hair sampling is straightforward, relatively tamper-resistant, and convenient for shipping.
A 1.5-inch portion comprising approximately 200 hair strands (about the thickness of a #2 pencil) nearest to the scalp creates 100mg of hair, which is the ideal quantity for examination and confirmation. For EtG, supplementary tests, or panels exceeding 10, a 150mg sample is advised. It is best to weigh the sample on a jeweler’s scale. In the absence of scalp hair, an equivalent volume of body hair may be utilized. The term head hair strictly refers to scalp hair, while body hair encompasses all other types (such as facial or axillary hair).
Process Overview
The laboratory process for analyzing a drug test encompasses four crucial steps: Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.
Accessioning is the initial step of incorporating a sample into the laboratory system. This step includes ensuring the sample's secure sealing and shipment, assigning a unique LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and finishing any extra data entry not facilitated by an electronic chain of custody mechanism.
Screening is an initial rapid assessment to identify drug misuse. Although Screening is cost-efficient for ruling out drug use in most samples, a favorable screen must be confirmed for validity in legal contexts. Samples that are presumptively positive in Screening necessitate secondary confirmation.
If a sample is assumed positive during Screening, more hair is extracted from the original sample to prepare for Extraction. During this phase, drugs are isolated from hair at significantly lower concentrations than other techniques (e.g., urine or oral fluid), which makes hair drug screening a complex methodology to execute.
Confirmation of any positive screening result is accomplished via GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS. All samples with presumptive positives undergo washing prior to confirmation if required. The end-to-end laboratory process, from Accessioning to Confirmation, adheres to both CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair criteria and compliance with ISO / IEC 17025 standards.
Advantages of hair drug testing:
Limitations:
Note: The term "hair follicle tests" is misleading, as the analysis involves the hair strand itself—not the follicle beneath the scalp
Hair follicle testing in Ohio, IL, offers a clearer edge over traditional urine tests by providing superior detection accuracy and reliability.
These tests capture a comprehensive substance use history, ensuring that employers can make informed decisions. With meticulous detection methods, hair testing minimizes errors linked to short-term urine analyses.
With an unparalleled detection window, hair follicle testing in Ohio, IL, extends detection past mere days and into a 90-day period.
This extensive window equips employers with a detailed view of an individual's substance use background, enhancing their decision-making process.
Hair follicle tests in Ohio, IL, significantly curb the potential for sample tampering, ensuring dependable and accepted results.
Unlike other testing methods, hair analysis limits adulteration risks, thus safeguarding result accuracy.
The convenience of nationwide and local testing centers in Ohio, IL, simplifies access to drug testing services.
Availability in various locales ensures that testing is quick, easy, and hassle-free for everyone involved.
The process in Ohio, IL, for ordering and undertaking hair follicle tests is both straightforward and confidential.
This ensures privacy from start to finish, calming concerns about process security and ease.
In Ohio, IL, our competitive pricing and swift result turnaround offer outstanding value.
Organizations, large and small, benefit from these affordable services without compromising on quality or speed.
In Ohio, IL, hair follicle drug tests are renowned for their precision and swiftness. Their capacity to reliably detect substance use makes them highly accurate.
Such efficacy ensures instantaneous and dependable results, assuring employers of an authentic substance history of their employees.
Employers in Ohio, IL, benefit from hair follicle testing as it promotes adherence to drug-free workplace policies.
This testing approach reduces legal threats and prioritizes workplace safety and compliance for enhanced peace of mind.
