Urine| Hair Follicle | Oral Fluid | Blood | ETG
Hair analysis is now acknowledged as an effective means to detect drug and alcohol consumption. The hair captures a comprehensive timeline of a person's intake by securing biomarkers within its strands as it grows. When hair is extracted close to the scalp, it can offer up to a three-month detection scope for alcohol and various drugs. Collecting hair is straightforward, somewhat hard to tamper with, and simple to send off.
A sample measuring 1.5 inches, consisting of roughly 200 strands of hair (akin to the thickness of a #2 pencil), near the scalp yields 100mg, which is the perfect sample for both screening and verification. For tests like EtG, additional analyses, and panels exceeding 10, it's advised to use 150mg of the sample. It's recommended to weigh the sample using a jeweler’s scale. In the absence of scalp hair, a comparable quantity of body hair can be collected. When mentioning head hair, we mean exclusively scalp hair. Body hair includes all other hair types (such as facial and axillary).
Process Overview
The laboratory drug test result processing includes four key stages: Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.
Accessioning pertains to the initial incorporation of a sample into the laboratory's framework. This step verifies that the sample is appropriately sealed and sent, assigns a random LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and carries out any additional data input absent from an electronic chain of custody system.
Screening consists of an initial rapid analysis for prohibited substances. While Screening offers an economical method to dismiss drug usage in most cases, confirmation is necessary for a positive screen to stand up legally. Samples showing presumptive positive results during Screening must undergo further confirmation.
Should a sample indicate a presumptive positive during Screening, additional hair is extracted from the original sample in preparation for Extraction. During Extraction, drugs are isolated from hair, albeit at a lower concentration than with other methods (such as urine or oral fluid), which explains why hair drug testing is among the most complex methods.
Confirmation of any positive Screening result is performed with GC/MS, GC/MS/MS or LC/MS/MS. All samples presumed positive undergo washing prior to Confirmation as required. Throughout the laboratory process, from Accessioning to Confirmation, evaluations are conducted under both the CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair designation and ISO / IEC 17025 accreditation.
Advantages of hair drug testing:
Limitations:
Note: Commonly dubbed "hair follicle tests", the test inspects the hair strand rather than the follicle beneath the scalp.
In Vancleave, the benefits of hair follicle testing surpass those of urine tests. Hair tests offer more accuracy and reliability.
Employers in Vancleave benefit from hair follicle testing due to its extensive detection window. Detect drug use from up to 90 days prior.
Hair follicle tests in Vancleave ensure tamper-resistant methods. Decreased risks of sample adulteration lead to trustworthy outcomes.
Vancleave offers convenient testing locations through our nationwide and local centers. Access to testing services is quick and hassle-free.
The testing process in Vancleave is simple and confidential, addressing privacy concerns effectively.
Hair follicle testing in Vancleave offers affordable pricing with fast turnaround times, providing great value.
In Vancleave, hair follicle tests stand out for their speed and precision. Hair testing capabilities ensure accurate results.
In Vancleave, hair follicle testing provides compliance assurance for employers. It supports drug-free policies and offers peace of mind.
