Hair Follicle Drug Testing - Kenly, NC

What it is, How it works

Hair analysis has become recognized as an effective method for identifying drug and alcohol consumption. Hair captures a long-term record of alcohol and other substances by encasing biomarkers within the strands of developing hair. When taken near the scalp, hair can offer an approximate 3-month detection window for both alcohol and other drugs. Hair is easy to collect, somewhat resistant to tampering, and convenient to transport.

A 1.5-inch portion of approximately 200 hair strands (roughly the width of a #2 pencil) nearest the scalp will yield 100 mg of hair, which is the perfect sample size for screening and confirmation. For EtG, additional tests, and/or tests exceeding 10 panels, 150 mg of the sample is advised. It is recommended to weigh the sample using a jeweler’s scale. If scalp hair is inaccessible, an equivalent portion of body hair can be gathered. When mentioning head hair, it refers exclusively to scalp hair. Body hair encompasses all other hair types (facial, axillary, etc.).

Process Overview

The laboratory process for a drug test result comprises four main steps: Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.

Accessioning covers the initial integration of a sample into a laboratory’s system. This process involves ensuring the sample was properly sealed and shipped, assigning a unique LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and completing any additional data inputs absent from an electronic chain of custody system.

Screening performs an initial rapid evaluation for substances of abuse. Although Screening is a low-cost method to eliminate drug usage in most samples, a positive screen requires confirmation for legal admissibility. Presumptive positive samples identified during Screening demand further confirmation.

If a sample is presumptively positive during the Screening phase, more hair is extracted from the original sample and readied for Extraction. This phase removes drugs from hair at a significantly lower concentration compared to others (e.g., urine or oral fluid), making hair drug testing the most challenging methodology to execute.

Any positive Screening outcome must undergo Confirmation using GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS. All presumptive positive samples undergo washing before confirmation as necessary. The comprehensive laboratory process, from Accessioning to Confirmation, is scrutinized under both the CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair classification and meets ISO / IEC 17025 accreditation standards.

Advantages of hair drug testing:

• Extended detection window: Hair drug tests detect drug consumption up to 90 days, whereas urine tests have a shorter detection range.
• Hard to deceive: Hair drug testing is highly resistant to tampering, ensuring more reliable results.
• Reveals historical usage: It records a pattern of drug practices over time, unlike immediate use detection.

Limitations:

• Not effective for recent use: Approximately 5-7 days are needed for drugs to become detectable in hair.
• Expense: Hair drug testing is usually pricier than other testing techniques.
• Result variability: Factors like hair color and individual hair growth patterns can influence drug metabolite concentrations in hair.

Note: Often termed "hair follicle tests", the test examines the hair strand rather than the hair follicle beneath the scalp.

Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing

The advantages of hair follicle testing over traditional urine testing in Kenly, NC, include its superior accuracy and reliability. While urine tests can detect recent substance use, hair tests provide a longer detection window, identifying use over months. Employers seeking in-depth analysis of substance history turn to hair testing for a comprehensive view.

In Kenly, NC, hair testing reigns due to its long detection period. It's a preferred choice over urine tests for thorough and precise drug detection, offering superior results. The broader insight provided by hair tests makes them invaluable for employers prioritizing reliable evaluations.

Extended Detection Window

The extended detection window of hair follicle testing in Kenly, NC, is a major advantage, allowing for drug use identification up to 90 days. This extended period offers a comprehensive view of an individual's substance use history, which is beneficial for employers needing detailed records.

Employers in Kenly, NC, receive a broader perspective on drug use with hair testing's extended detection capabilities. By enabling 90-day overviews, it surpasses shorter-term testing methods, ensuring an exact assessment of an individual’s history, thus enhancing hiring and monitoring processes.

Tamper-Resistant Testing Method

In Kenly, NC, hair follicle testing provides a tamper-resistant approach that limits the risk of sample adulteration. Its robust design ensures that results derived from hair tests remain credible and defensible, providing indisputable proof of substance use.

Hair follicle tests in Kenly, NC, are deemed unquestionable due to their resistance to tampering. This level of security strengthens test reliability, fostering trust among employers who require dependable and solid sample integrity for precise results.

Convenient Nationwide Locations

Accredited Drug Testing's nationwide and local centers, including Kenly, NC, ensure convenient access to testing services. These facilities provide a hassle-free, streamlined experience enabling individuals and organizations to effortlessly obtain drug testing services.

In Kenly, NC, our testing locations promise easy connectivity and access for all testing needs. This network facilitates quicker processes and embodies convenience, making it highly suitable for those seeking efficient testing solutions.

Simple, Confidential Process

The testing process in Kenly, NC, promises a simple and confidential procedure, ensuring that results and privacy concerns are handled meticulously. This approach guarantees a seamless experience from ordering to receiving results, protecting personal information.

With confidentiality at its core, Kenly's hair follicle testing is straightforward, tailored for customer ease. From beginning to completion, it offers a secure, undisclosed route, addressing privacy and facilitating a worry-free testing protocol.

Affordable, Fast Turnaround

Kenly, NC's competitive prices for hair follicle testing assure affordable options paired with prompt test result delivery. This efficient cost-structure supports businesses of various sizes, offering great value along with expedited service timelines.

Emphasizing value, hair testing in Kenly, NC, offers cost-effective pricing and swift turnarounds. Companies benefit from optimal resource allocation, ensuring timely and budget-friendly testing, fostering economic benefits and satisfaction.

Fast, Accurate, and Reliable Results

In Kenly, NC, hair follicle drug tests provide precise and swift results, ensuring the detection of substances with remarkable accuracy. Fast and Reliable, these tests offer high precision, capturing substance use that alternative methods might miss. By choosing hair testing, individuals benefit from prompt, precise insights, supporting employers' needs for accurate assessments.

The efficiency of hair follicle testing in Kenly, NC, is unmatched, providing quick and truthful checkpoint deliverables. It’s a trusted solution for various testing needs, ensuring accuracy while maintaining speed. This swiftness coupled with accuracy makes it an ideal choice for precise substance detection.

Compliance and Peace of Mind for Employers

For Kenly, NC employers, hair follicle testing guarantees compliance with workplace drug-free policies. Ensuring adherence to these policies, it mitigates legal concerns and supports a safer work environment, offering peace of mind and reinforcing workplace safety initiatives.

Employers in Kenly safe-guard themselves against legal risks with hair testing, a method providing compliance and boosting workplace safety. This approach instills confidence in upholding addiction-free environments, affording stability and legal reassurance.

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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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