Hair Follicle Drug Testing - Beeler, KS

What it is, How it works

Hair testing has emerged as a potent method for detecting alcohol and drug use. Hair can capture a comprehensive history of alcohol and drugs by embedding biomarkers within the strands of growing hair. When cut close to the scalp, it can offer a detection window of up to nearly 3 months for alcohol and drugs. Collecting hair is straightforward, relatively hard to tamper with, and convenient to transport.

A 1.5-inch section of roughly 200 hair strands (around the size of a #2 pencil) nearest to the scalp will provide 100mg of hair, which is perfect for screening and verification. For EtG, supplementary tests, and tests beyond 10 panels, 150mg of the sample is preferred. It's advisable to weigh the sample using a jeweler’s scale. If scalp hair can't be accessed, a similar amount of body hair may be used. When mentioning head hair, we mean scalp hair exclusively. Body hair includes all other types (facial, axillary, etc.).

Process Overview

The procedure for processing a drug test result in the lab comprises four key steps: Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.

Accessioning initiates the processing of a sample into the laboratory’s system. This step verifies that the sample was adequately sealed and dispatched, assigns a random LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and completes any missing data entry that an electronic chain of custody system doesn’t cover.

Screening conducts an initial rapid test for drugs of abuse. Although Screening is a cost-efficient method to rule out drug usage for most samples, a positive screen must be confirmed for court admissibility. Samples with a presumptively positive Screening result must undergo a secondary confirmation.

If Screening indicates a presumptively positive result, additional hair is taken from the initial sample and processed for Extraction. At this stage, drugs are extracted from hair at significantly lower concentrations than other methods (such as urine or oral fluid), which accounts for the high difficulty level of hair drug screening.

Confirmation for any positive Screening outcome is carried out through GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS. All presumptively positive samples undergo washing before confirmation, as required. The whole laboratory operation from Accessioning to Confirmation is reviewed under both the CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair designation and accreditation to ISO / IEC 17025 standards.

Advantages of hair drug testing:

• Long detection window: Hair drug tests can reveal drug use for up to 90 days, unlike urine tests, which have a shorter detection span.
• Difficulty to cheat: It’s extremely challenging to cheat a hair drug test, leading to more accurate results.
• Provides historical data: It can display a pattern of drug usage over time, not exclusively recent use.

Limitations:

• Cannot detect recent use: It requires about 5-7 days for drugs to show up in hair.
• Cost: Hair drug tests typically cost more than other drug testing approaches.
• Variations in results: Elements like hair color and individual hair growth differences can impact drug metabolite concentrations in hair.

Note: Although often called "hair follicle tests", the analysis is conducted on the hair strand and not the scalp hair follicle

Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing

Hair follicle testing outshines urine testing in Beeler, KS, offering enhanced accuracy and reliability. The much longer detection window of up to 90 days for hair tests surpasses the time-limited urine tests.

Hair testing delivers superior drug detection, appealing to employers and authorities needing precise monitoring. It is much harder to evade compared to a traditional urine test, making hair tests more dependable.

Extended Detection Window

Extended detection windows set hair follicle tests apart in Beeler, KS, allowing drug usage tracking over 90 days. Employers gain a thorough understanding of a candidate's substance history, providing an edge over shorter-span tests.

With hair follicle testing, notable advantages include capturing prolonged records of usage, offering a more comprehensive overview over a longer term than other tests typically can.

Tamper-Resistant Testing Method

Hair follicle testing in Beeler, KS, offers a significant reduction in sample adulteration risk, enhancing reliability. Its resistance to tampering provides results that are trustworthy and consistently accurate.

Employers benefit from the tamper-resistant nature of hair tests, which makes manipulating the results extremely difficult. This ensures honest outcomes, crucial for maintaining drug-free workplaces.

Convenient Nationwide Locations

With an extensive network of nationwide testing centers, including local options in Beeler, KS, hair testing services are within easy reach. This ensures convenient and efficient service access, reducing delays.

The convenience of our numerous testing locations in every city, including Beeler, is unmatched, providing hassle-free and quick services, beneficial for both individuals and companies alike.

Simple, Confidential Process

The process of ordering, taking, and receiving hair testing results in Beeler, KS, is simple and confidential. This ensures privacy concerns are addressed, providing ease of use for all users.

Users benefit from a streamlined process, where concerns about confidentiality and simplicity are paramount, enhancing the comfort and security of all participants undertesting.

Affordable, Fast Turnaround

Offering competitively affordable pricing and fast turnaround times, Beeler, KS, businesses appreciate the value in hair follicle testing. The pricing structure suits companies of every size, promoting cost-effectiveness.

Incorporating quick turnaround times ensures that businesses receive value without sacrificing quality. Simple and cost-effective, these tests facilitate fast deployments and provide peace of mind.

Fast, Accurate, and Reliable Results

The speed and accuracy of hair follicle drug tests make them a reliable option in Beeler, KS. These tests deliver fast and precise results, ensuring any signs of substance use are effectively detected within the offered window.

Hair follicle drug tests are revered for their high accuracy, providing reliable results that can be trusted across various sectors. The precision of these tests significantly contributes to the trust employers in Beeler place upon them.

Compliance and Peace of Mind for Employers

Employers in Beeler, KS, find peace of mind with hair follicle testing, ensuring compliance with drug-free policies. This practice reduces legal risks while bolstering workplace safety and trust.

By embracing hair testing, companies commit to standards of safety and integrity, resulting in a safer and more efficient work environment, leading to positively increased corporate compliance.

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What's New In Hair Follicle Drug Testing according to the Hair Drug Testing Experts

With its multidisciplinary nature, hair testing brings together researchers, scientists, and experts from various domains to develop innovative techniques, explore new methodologies, and address emerging concerns, responding to the ever-evolving challenges of drug abuse, therapeutic drug monitoring, and environmental exposures to pollutants.

The joint meeting of the Society of Hair Testing (SoHT) and the Italian Group of Forensic Toxicologists (GTFI) was organized in Verona, June 8–10, 2022, and hosted by the Legal Medicine team of the Verona University Hospital, directed by Franco Tagliaro together with Federica Bortolotti and Rossella Gottardo.

It served as a prominent platform for knowledge exchange and collaboration, facilitating groundbreaking advancements in hair testing and analysis. In this special issue of Drug Testing and Analysis, we aim to showcase the remarkable manuscripts presented at this significant event, shedding light on the latest research and highlighting the future directions in this field.

Novel Analytical Techniques: The Verona meeting witnessed the unveiling of cutting-edge analytical techniques, offering enhanced sensitivity, selectivity, and accuracy for drug testing. Remarkable advancements in sample preparation, detection, and identification of drug compounds have been presented. The manuscripts in this section presented novel approaches, such as multianalyte methods and on-line preparation which can enable rapid analysis and improve thorough forensic investigations.

Biomarkers and Pharmacokinetics: The identification and validation of reliable biomarkers and pharmacokinetic studies are fundamental aspects of drug testing and analysis. The impact of hair treatments on the oxidation/decomposition of drugs in hair was also explored, as the long-term fate of drugs incorporated in the keratin matrix. Furthermore, the SoHT meeting in Verona featured research on the identification and quantification of alcohol abuse biomarkers, their stability, and their correlation with exposure and other biomarkers.

Forensic Applications and Interpretation: One of the vital objectives of hair testing is its application in forensic investigations and legal proceedings. The SoHT meeting in Verona emphasized the significance of rigorous interpretation of analytical results and the need for standardized protocols. Manuscripts in this section present advancements in forensic toxicology, and have explored the challenges posed by emerging designer drugs and strategies to combat their proliferation. The pitfalls encountered when the exogenous/endogenous nature of a substance is questioned were presented and discussed. The special issue presents also manuscripts that delve into the ethical implications of drug testing in drug facilitated sexual assaults.

Clinical Applications of hair testing are witnessed by the insight on environmental tobacco smoke exposure, assessed by hair analysis in a population of students and the study of in utero-exposure to drugs of abuse through neonatal hair analysis. Exposure to drugs was also important in cases of child abuse/neglect, when the clinical purpose of hair testing merge with its forensic applications.

The legal framework surrounding hair testing and the achievement of guidelines to ensure fairness, accuracy, and confidentiality in drug testing practices have also been discussed,and the SoHT consensus on general hair testing and testing for drugs of abuse was presented at the meeting and published as a Letter to the Editor.

In conclusion, the special issue of Drug Testing and Analysis, featuring manuscripts from the SoHT–GTFI meeting in Verona 2022, reflects the remarkable advancements achieved in this field. The manuscripts provide valuable insights into novel analytical techniques, biomarkers, pharmacokinetics, forensic applications, and ethical considerations. As we embrace these advancements, we pave the way for a safer, healthier society, where drug testing and analysis serve as powerful tools in protecting public health and maintaining integrity in various sectors. The research presented in this special issue will undoubtedly shape the future of drug testing and analysis, fostering collaboration and inspiring further innovation in this crucial area of scientific inquiry.

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