Urine| Hair Follicle | Oral Fluid | Blood | ETG
Hair testing is increasingly recognized as an effective method for detecting drug and alcohol consumption. This technique offers a long-term overview of substance use by embedding biomarkers within the hair strand as it grows. When hair is collected near the scalp, it can reflect a detection period of up to about three months for both alcohol and drugs. The process of hair collection is straightforward, with low risk of tampering, and ensures easy shipment.
Obtaining a 1.5-inch segment comprising roughly 200 strands of hair (similar to the thickness of a #2 pencil) nearest to the scalp yields 100mg of hair, serving as the optimal specimen for both screening and confirmation purposes. For EtG, additional tests, and/or panels exceeding 10, a specimen of 150mg is suggested. It's advisable to weigh the specimen using a jeweler’s scale. In the absence of scalp hair, an equivalent volume of body hair can be gathered. When mentioning head hair, this exclusively implies scalp hair. Conversely, body hair denotes all other forms (facial, axillary, etc.).
Process Overview
The laboratory processing of a drug test result encompasses four primary steps: Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.
Accessioning refers to the initial integration of a sample into a laboratory’s system. This stage includes verifying that the sample was properly sealed and shipped, assigning a random LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and finalizing any supplementary data entry absent from an electronic chain of custody system.
Screening consists of a preliminary examination for substances of abuse. While Screening is a cost-efficient means to negate drug usage in most samples, a positive result is requisite for confirmation to be valid in legal contexts. Any samples preliminarily positive in Screening mandate a subsequent confirmation.
Should a sample exhibit a presumptive positive in the Screening phase, additional hair is extracted from the original specimen and prepped for Extraction. During Extraction, substances are retrieved from hair at significantly reduced concentrations compared to other techniques (such as urine or oral fluid), highlighting hair drug screening as the most complex methodology to conduct.
Confirmatory analysis of any positive screening result is executed via GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS. All samples with presumptive positives are cleansed preceding confirmation as necessary. The complete laboratory protocol from Accessioning to Confirmation is scrutinized under both the CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair designation and the accreditation compliant with ISO / IEC 17025 standards.
Advantages of hair drug testing:
Limitations:
Note: Although commonly called "hair follicle tests", the procedure examines the hair strand itself, not the follicle beneath the scalp.
Hair follicle testing is preferable to urine tests for several reasons in Indian Creek, IL. Firstly, hair tests offer a longer detection window, capturing drug use over months rather than days. This extended timeline provides a detailed view of an individual's substance history. Additionally, hair tests are hard to cheat, ensuring employers obtain accurate and reliable results compared to urine tests.
With its ability to trace drug use back up to 90 days, hair follicle testing offers an extensive detection window. This feature is invaluable for employers in Indian Creek, IL, who aim to assess an employee's long-term substance behavior. Such an extended history empowers employers to make informed hiring or retention decisions, ensuring a safe and drug-free workplace environment.
Hair follicle testing significantly reduces the chance of sample tampering in Indian Creek, IL. Unlike urine testing, where samples can be adulterated, hair tests provide unquestionable reliability. The collection process involves cutting hair from the scalp, a method integral to maintaining sample integrity, and enhancing trust in the results.
With numerous testing centers across the nation, including those in Indian Creek, IL, Accredited Drug Testing ensures that accessing hair follicle testing is convenient and effortless. These widespread locations facilitate quick, hassle-free service, making it easy for individuals to undergo testing without unnecessary delay or travel inconvenience.
Our hair follicle testing procedure in Indian Creek, IL, is straightforward and confidential. Ordering, performing, and receiving results are all conducted with privacy and ease in mind. This simple and secure approach addresses any concerns about discretion, ensuring individuals feel comfortable throughout the testing process.
Accredited Drug Testing provides competitive pricing and swift turnaround times for hair follicle tests in Indian Creek, IL. Our cost-effective pricing structure offers exceptional value, while ensuring that results are delivered promptly. This makes our services accessible to companies of all sizes, offering peace of mind and financial prudence.
In Indian Creek, IL, hair follicle drug tests guarantee fast, precise, and reliable outcomes. This testing method is highly effective in identifying substance usage with remarkable accuracy. By detecting drug traces embedded in the hair, the process offers both rapid and dependable results, establishing hair follicle testing as a superior choice in drug detection technology.
Employers in Indian Creek, IL, experience peace of mind and compliance assurance by opting for hair follicle testing. This method supports adherence to drug-free workplace policies, mitigating the risk of legal ramifications and amplifying overall safety. Hair tests are an integral part of a strategic approach to maintaining a healthy, productive work environment.
