Hair Follicle Drug Testing - Unionville, NC

What it is, How it works

Hair analysis has emerged as a significant instrument for identifying drug and alcohol consumption. Hair captures a history of drug and alcohol use by embedding biomarkers within the strands. When hair is sampled near the scalp, it can provide a detection timeline of up to around three months for substances. Collecting hair is straightforward, challenging to tamper with, and convenient to transport.

A 1.5-inch portion of roughly 200 hair strands (comparable to a #2 pencil's width) nearest the scalp yields 100mg, the preferred quantity for both screening and confirmation processes. For EtG, additional tests, or panels above 10, a 150mg specimen is advisable. We suggest utilizing a jeweler's balance for weighing the sample. If scalp hair is unavailable, an equivalent amount of body hair can be obtained. For clarity, head hair specifically refers to scalp hair, whereas body hair includes all other types (facial, axillary, etc.).

Process Overview

The principal procedures in a laboratory's processing of a drug test result encompass Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.

Accessioning involves integrating a sample into a lab's system initially. This involves ensuring the sample's seal and shipment integrity, assigning it a unique LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and completing any remaining data entry absent from an electronic custody system.

Screening serves as a preliminary check for drug presence. Although Screening is efficient for eliminating drug presence in most samples, court admissibility requires a Confirmed result. Thus, presumptive Screen positives need further Confirmation.

Should a sample indicate presumptive positivity in Screening, additional hair is extracted from the initial sample for further Extraction. At this stage, drugs are isolated from hair at lower concentrations than in other methods (such as urine or oral fluids), demonstrating the complexity of hair drug testing.

Confirmation of presumptive positives involves techniques like GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS. All such samples are cleansed before Confirmatory testing as requisite. The complete laboratory process, from Accessioning to Confirmation, is evaluated according to CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair parameters and accredited under ISO / IEC 17025 standards.

Advantages of hair drug testing:

• Extended detection span: Hair drug analysis can identify drug intake up to 90 days prior, unlike urine tests with limited spans.
• Challenging to manipulate: Tampering with a hair drug test is notably tough, ensuring higher accuracy in results.
• Offers historical insights: Hair analysis can illustrate extended patterns of drug use, beyond recent activity.

Limitations:

• Incapable of detecting immediate intake: Drugs become noticeable in hair within approximately 5-7 days.
• Expensive: Hair drug evaluations typically incur higher costs compared to other testing options.
• Result variability: Elements like hair color and unique growth patterns can impact metabolite concentration in hair.

Note: While commonly termed "hair follicle tests," the actual analysis is conducted on the hair shaft, not the follicle beneath the scalp.

Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing

Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing in Unionville, NC: Hair testing surpasses traditional urine tests by offering superior detection accuracy. Unlike urine tests, which have a limited detection window, hair tests can reveal substance use over a longer period, providing unmatched reliability and comprehensive insights into an individual’s drug history.

Extended Detection Window

Extended Detection Window in Unionville, NC: Hair follicle testing uncovers drug use for up to 90 days, offering employers a detailed understanding of a candidate or employee's substance history. This extended detection period is crucial for maintaining workplace safety and making informed decisions.

Tamper-Resistant Testing Method

Tamper-Resistant Testing Method in Unionville, NC: The design of hair follicle tests significantly reduces the possibility of sample tampering. By ensuring reliable and defensible results, they set a high standard for drug testing methods and bolster confidence in drug screening outcomes.

Convenient Nationwide Locations

Convenient Nationwide Testing Locations and Local Locations in Unionville, NC: Our extensive network of testing centers guarantees easy access to hair follicle testing services, ensuring a convenient experience for users. Whether national or local, getting tested is quick and hassle-free.

Simple, Confidential Process

Simple, Confidential Process in Unionville, NC: Our process for hair follicle testing prioritizes simplicity and confidentiality, addressing all privacy concerns. The straightforward system of ordering, taking, and receiving results guarantees ease and peace of mind throughout the testing journey.

Affordable, Fast Turnaround

Affordable Pricing and Fast Turnaround in Unionville, NC: Our competitive pricing and swift turnaround times provide outstanding value for businesses of all sizes, ensuring affordable access to reliable testing without compromising on quality or speed of results.

Fast, Accurate, and Reliable Results

Fast, Accurate, and Reliable Results in Unionville, NC: Hair follicle tests ensure precision and swiftness, delivering highly accurate substance use detection. This method provides exceptional reliability when evaluating an individual's drug history, assuring stakeholders of the integrity of the results obtained.

Compliance and Peace of Mind for Employers

Compliance and Peace of Mind for Employers in Unionville, NC: Utilizing hair follicle tests guarantees adherence to drug-free workplace policies. This method mitigates legal risks while fostering a safer work environment, providing employers with invaluable peace of mind.

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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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