Hair Follicle Drug Testing - Allen, LA

What it is, How it works

Acknowledged widely as a potent means to uncover alcohol and drug consumption, hair testing plays a significant role. By embedding biomarkers within the threads of growing hair, it provides an extended timeline of substance use. A sample obtained near the scalp can reveal drug and alcohol usage for a duration of up to three months. Easy to collect, not easily tampered with, and straightforward to dispatch, hair offers a reliable testing option.

A 1.5-inch segment, comprising roughly 200 hair strands (equivalent to the diameter of a #2 pencil) taken nearest the scalp, yields 100mg, which is the optimal amount for both screening and confirming tests. When carrying out EtG or additional tests beyond 10 panels, 150mg is advisable. It is suggested to measure the sample using a jeweler’s scale. Should scalp hair not be an option, a similar amount of body hair is acceptable. Our mention of head hair pertains exclusively to scalp hair, whereas body hair includes all other types (facial, underarm, etc.).

Process Overview

The laboratory procedure for processing drug tests encompasses four essential stages: Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.

In the Accessioning phase, a sample is initially incorporated into the lab's management system. This step ensures the sample is securely packed and delivered, allocates a unique Laboratory Accessioning Number (LAN), and completes any necessary information not accounted for in an electronic chain of custody process.

Screening involves a rapid preliminary assessment for substances of abuse. While this phase is a budget-friendly method to dismiss drug presence in most samples, a positive screen demands further verification for legal acceptability. Samples with presumptive positive results in the Screening stage necessitate subsequent validation.

When a sample exhibits presumptively positive results during Screening, additional hair is extracted from the original sample for the Extraction phase. Here, drugs are extracted from hair at notably lower concentrations compared to other testing practices (such as urine or saliva), making hair drug screening a particularly challenging test to execute.

Any positive findings in Screening undergo Confirmation using GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS techniques. All presumptive positive samples receive a wash before confirmation as necessary. The process, from Accessioning through Confirmation, is scrutinized under both the College of American Pathologists (CAP) Hair certification and compliant with ISO / IEC 17025 accreditation standards.

Benefits of hair drug testing:

• Extended detection period: Hair drug testing covers a substance use timeline of up to 90 days, unlike urine tests that offer shorter windows.
• Resistance to manipulation: Hair drug tests are much harder to deceive, thus ensuring result precision.
• Retrospective usage patterns: They reveal a systematic history of drug use rather than just recent consumption.

Drawbacks:

• Inability to detect recent intake: It takes around 5-7 days before substances become traceable in hair.
• Expense: Hair testing typically incurs higher costs in comparison to other drug testing methods.
• Result discrepancy: Elements like hair pigmentation and personal hair growth differences might influence drug metabolite concentrations in hair.

Note: Despite the frequent label "hair follicle tests," the examination concentrates on the hair strand itself, not the follicle embedded beneath the scalp.

Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing

In Allen, LA, hair follicle testing offers significant advantages over traditional urine tests. Its main strength lies in the superior detection accuracy and reliability. Hair tests uncover historical patterns of drug use over an extended period, offering a broader view compared to the limited scope provided by urine tests. Organizations benefit from a more comprehensive analysis.

Extended Detection Window

With an impressive detection window of up to 90 days, hair follicle testing in Allen, LA, offers a much broader analysis period compared to other methods. Employers gain insights into the long-term substance history of applicants or employees, allowing them to make informed hiring and retention decisions based on a complete picture of past behavior.

Tamper-Resistant Testing Method

In Allen, LA, hair follicle testing minimizes the risk of result alteration. This tamper-resistant method ensures that samples remain untainted, providing results that stakeholders can trust. The methodology is robust against external manipulation, making it the preferred choice for reliable substance use screening.

Convenient Nationwide Locations

Accredited Drug Testing boasts a network of convenient nationwide testing centers, including accessible locations right in Allen, LA. This extensive reach guarantees quick, easy, and stress-free access to testing services, ensuring individuals and businesses can seamlessly undergo necessary evaluations without hassle.

Simple, Confidential Process

The process for ordering, administering, and receiving hair follicle test results in Allen, LA is simple and confidential. Careful attention to privacy ensures that sensitive information remains secure, while the straightforward methodology enables a user-friendly experience that alleviates any concerns prospective clients may have.

Affordable, Fast Turnaround

Our approach in Allen, LA emphasizes affordable pricing and fast turnaround for hair follicle tests, offering exceptional value to businesses of varying sizes. Competitive pricing structures, coupled with quick result processing, provide economical solutions without compromising quality or reliability.

Fast, Accurate, and Reliable Results

Hair follicle drug testing provides fast, accurate, and reliable results in Allen, LA. Its precision in detecting substance use is unparalleled, delivering high accuracy rates that outpace standard testing procedures. For individuals and organizations seeking dependable outcomes, this testing method ensures timely and trustworthy revelations about substance involvement.

Compliance and Peace of Mind for Employers

Employers in Allen, LA achieve compliance and peace of mind through hair follicle testing, aligning themselves with drug-free workplace policies. This testing method assists in mitigating legal risks by ensuring policy adherence, contributing to safer work environments and enhancing overall organizational security.

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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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