Hair Follicle Drug Testing - Village Of Clarkston, MI

What it is, How it works

Hair testing has increasingly become recognized as an effective way to identify drug and alcohol consumption. Hair offers an extended record of drug and alcohol intake by embedding biomarkers within its strands as they grow. When hair is gathered close to the scalp, it can offer up to a 3-month detection period for alcohol and drugs. Collecting hair is straightforward, difficult to tamper with, and simple to transport.

A sample of 1.5 inches consisting of about 200 hair strands (about the diameter of a #2 pencil) near the scalp yields 100mg of hair, which is the optimal sample size for both screening and confirmation purposes. For EtG, additional tests, and tests exceeding 10 panels, 150mg of the hair sample is advised. It's advisable to weigh the sample using a jeweler’s scale. If scalp hair cannot be obtained, an equivalent quantity of body hair can be used. "Head hair" specifically refers to scalp hair, while "body hair" encompasses all other types (facial, axillary, etc.).

Process Overview

The primary stages in laboratory drug test processing include Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.

Accessioning is the primary step where a sample is integrated into the laboratory’s system. This process ensures the sample was properly sealed and shipped, assigns a unique LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and completes any pending data entry not included in an electronic chain of custody system.

Screening is a rapid initial evaluation for drugs of abuse. This cost-effective step allows for the elimination of drug use in most samples. Nonetheless, any positive results in Screening require confirmation to be valid in legal contexts. Samples with preliminary positive results in Screening necessitate an additional confirmation step.

Upon a preliminary positive result in the Screening stage, additional hair is taken from the original specimen for Extraction. This involves extracting drugs from hair in concentrations much lower than other methods (such as urine or oral fluid), making hair drug screening a challenging procedure.

Confirmation of positive screening results is achieved through GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS methods. Any samples with presumed positive results are washed prior to confirmation if necessary. The comprehensive laboratory process from Accessioning to Confirmation is monitored under both the CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair classification and ISO / IEC 17025 accreditation standards.

Advantages of hair drug testing:

• Extended detection period: Hair drug testing can identify drug use up to 90 days back, unlike urine tests which have shorter detection durations.
• Challenging to circumvent: Cheating a hair drug test is quite difficult, enhancing result accuracy.
• Chronicles usage patterns: This test reveals a pattern of drug use over time, not merely recent occurrences.

Limitations:

• Inability to detect recent use: Drugs take approximately 5-7 days to become detectable in hair.
• Expense: Hair drug testing generally incurs higher costs compared to other methods.
• Result variability: Factors like hair color and individual hair growth variations can influence drug metabolite concentrations in hair.

Note: Though often termed as "hair follicle tests", the actual analysis focuses on the hair strand, not the follicle under the scalp

Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing

In the Village of Clarkston, MI, hair follicle testing is preferred over urine tests due to its superior detection accuracy and reliability. Unlike traditional urine tests, hair testing can identify foreign substances over a lengthy window, offering employers a true assessment of an individual's lifestyle. This method ensures comprehensive detection and reduces doubts over test integrity.

Extended Detection Window

Employers in Village of Clarkston, MI, utilize hair follicle testing for its extended detection window of up to 90 days. This method provides a detailed overview of an individual's substance use history, giving employers a reliable measure of an applicant's or employee's past behavior, beyond just recent activity.

Tamper-Resistant Testing Method

Hair follicle testing in Village of Clarkston, MI, significantly minimizes the chance of sample tampering, providing unquestionable reliability. Unlike other testing methods, which can be influenced by external factors, hair tests offer a secure and trustworthy approach, ensuring results that hold up under scrutiny.

Convenient Nationwide Locations

Our numerous testing facilities, including those in Village of Clarkston, MI, make accessing services easy and convenient. With numerous locations nationwide, testing for drugs and alcohol becomes a streamlined process, allowing individuals and employers to obtain results without hassle or prolonged wait times.

Simple, Confidential Process

Our confidential process in Village of Clarkston, MI ensures privacy and ease. From ordering to obtaining results, ensuring user-friendly access while preserving confidentiality. Our system guarantees a simple, worry-free journey, prioritizing the security of personal information at every stage.

Affordable, Fast Turnaround

In Village of Clarkston, MI, our drug testing incorporates affordable pricing coupled with quick turnaround times, ensuring companies of all sizes receive superior service without financial strain. The focus on value and efficiency reassures businesses they're receiving comprehensive testing at competitive costs.

Fast, Accurate, and Reliable Results

In the Village of Clarkston, hair follicle drug testing stands out for its precision, delivering results that are both fast and reliable. This method surpasses others by offering high accuracy in substance detection. Employers and individuals benefit significantly from the speed and dependability of hair tests, ensuring a detailed and truthful analysis of substance use history.

Compliance and Peace of Mind for Employers

In the Village of Clarkston, MI, employers benefit from hair follicle testing by maintaining compliance with workplace drug policies. This method reduces legal risks and supports a safe work environment. By enforcing zero-tolerance policies effectively, companies uphold safety and ensure business integrity.

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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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