Urine| Hair Follicle | Oral Fluid | Blood | ETG
Hair testing is widely recognized as an effective method for identifying drug and alcohol usage. Hair strands capture biomarkers within their fibers, offering a prolonged historical record of alcohol and drug intake. When hair is sampled near the scalp, it can reveal drug or alcohol consumption over a span of around three months. Collecting hair is straightforward, not easily tampered with, and convenient for transportation.
Approximately 1.5 inches of around 200 hair strands (comparable to the thickness of a #2 pencil) collected nearest to the scalp provide about 100mg, the optimal amount needed for both screening and confirmation. For EtG and other extended panels above 10, it is advised to use 150mg. We suggest using a jeweler’s scale for weighing the sample. If scalp hair isn't available, a comparable amount of body hair may be utilized. Our reference to head hair specifically signifies scalp hair, whereas body hair pertains to all other varieties (such as facial or axillary).
Process Overview
The laboratory processing of drug test results primarily involves four stages: Accessioning, Screening, Extraction, and Confirmation.
In the Accessioning phase, a sample is initially entered into the laboratory's system, which includes confirming the sample's proper sealing and shipment, assigning a unique LAN (Laboratory Accessioning Number), and completing any extra data input absent from an electronic chain of custody.
During Screening, a preliminary inspection for drugs of abuse is conducted. While cost-effective in excluding drug usage in most samples, a positive result from Screening requires confirmation for legal proceedings. Any samples evident through Screening as presumptively positive necessitate further confirmation.
If a sample appears presumptively positive during Screening, additional hair is extracted from the original specimen for the Extraction phase. At this stage, drugs are isolated from hair at considerably lower concentrations than other methods (e.g., urine or oral fluid), underlining the complexity of hair drug screening.
Confirmation of any positive Screening result is done using GC/MS, GC/MS/MS, or LC/MS/MS. All samples identified as presumptive positives are cleansed before confirmation as needed. The overall lab process, from Accessioning to Confirmation, complies with the CAP (College of American Pathologists) Hair certification and ISO / IEC 17025 accreditation.
Advantages of hair drug testing:
Limitations:
Note: Commonly mistaken as "hair follicle tests", these assessments evaluate the hair strand, not the follicle located below the scalp.
Why Hair Follicle Testing Beats Urine Testing in Ortley, SD
Extended Detection Window in Ortley, SD
Tamper-Resistant Testing Method in Ortley, SD
Convenient Nationwide Testing Locations and Local Locations in Ortley, SD
Simple, Confidential Process in Ortley, SD
Affordable Pricing and Fast Turnaround in Ortley, SD
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