Urine| Hair Follicle | Oral Fluid | Blood | ETG
Hair testing is recognized as an effective method for identifying drug and alcohol consumption. It provides a long-term snapshot of alcohol and drug usage by capturing biomarkers within the fibers of the developing hair. When harvested near the scalp, hair offers an approximate 3-month detection timeframe for alcohol and drugs. It's effortless to collect, moderately resistant to tampering, and simple to transport.
A 1.5-inch section of approximately 200 hair strands (roughly the size of a #2 pencil) closest to the scalp yields 100mg of hair, the preferred sample size for both screening and confirmation. For EtG, additional checks, and/or tests exceeding 10 panels, 150mg of hair is advised. We suggest using a jeweler's scale for precise specimen weighing. If scalp hair is not present, a comparable quantity of body hair may be obtained. References to head hair pertain exclusively to scalp hair. Body hair encompasses all other types (facial, axillary, etc.).
Process Overview
There are four crucial stages in the lab processing of a drug test outcome, namely Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.
During Accessioning, the sample is initially integrated into a lab's system, which includes confirming the proper sealing and shipping of the sample, attributing a unique LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and completing any extra data input not available via an electronic chain of custody system.
Screening is a preliminary evaluation for potential drug presence. Although Screening is an economical strategy for eliminating drug usage in most cases, a positive result requires confirmation for legal admissibility. Any samples with presumed positive results in Screening necessitate further confirmation.
If a sample displays a presumptive positive during the Screening phase, additional hair is drawn from the original specimen for the Extraction phase. Here, drugs are isolated from hair at considerably lower concentrations compared to other methods (e.g., urine or oral fluid), which makes hair drug screening the most challenging technique to execute.
Confirmation for any positive result from Screening is executed through GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS. Samples with presumptive positive results are cleansed before confirmation if necessary. The complete lab process from Accessioning to Confirmation is evaluated under the scrutiny of both the CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair classification and the accreditation to ISO / IEC 17025 standards.
Advantages of hair drug testing:
Limitations:
Note: Although commonly known as "hair follicle tests", the examination targets the hair strand, not the follicle beneath the scalp.
Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing in Shaw, MN
Extended Detection Window in Shaw, MN
Tamper-Resistant Testing Method in Shaw, MN
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