With the high prevalence of drug tests used in the workplace, employers may struggle with deciding which one is better to detect recent substance abuse. This guide on why hair follicle drug tests are the best type of test will help clarify any confusion.

How It Works

Hair follicle tests are used to detect substance abuse in potential employees via drug metabolites. As the body breaks down substances, drug metabolites form in the hair, fingernails, and urine. Hair metabolites can even detect substances ingested through oral or nasal cavities. As the body creates drug metabolites, these metabolites transfer to hair follicles and oil glands on the scalp, body, face, and groin. Drug metabolites can remain in hair for months at a time making hair testing a reliable drug test to detect prior abuse.

Accuracy

A hair follicle drug test produces reliable data on substance abuse for up to three months or 90 days of prior use. However, drug tests are not 100 percent accurate even though they detect various substances depending on the panel administered. 5-panel hair follicle drug tests detect basic substances like amphetamines, cocaine, PCP, marijuana, opiates, and hydrocodone. These tests range up to 19 panels which can detect the same substances and more, such as barbiturates, methadone, ketamine, kratom, tramadol, etc. Higher panel drug tests offer an extended detection time up to six months, nine months, and even a year.

Cost

The price of a hair follicle drug test varies depending on your location and drug testing facility. Also, the number of substances tested may determine the overall cost of the drug test. Employers may cover the costs of these tests and only require employees to submit a sample. Although there’s no guaranteed price on these tests, hair follicle tests are typically non-invasive and only require a small sample of a patient’s body hair, scalp hair, facial hair, or pubic hair for testing.

How Hair Follicle Testing Compares To Other Drug Tests

Compared to other administered drug tests, such as urine tests, the main reason why hair follicle drug tests are the best type of test is because it delivers a larger detection window. For example, urine tests may only test for up to a week of prior substance abuse. Hair tests, as previously mentioned, detect up to 90 days of prior use unless larger panel are used, and they can detect prior abuse up to a year. Both are great options for employers depending on how large of a detection window they need.

AMH Nationwide offers state-of-the-art 12-panel hair follicle tests to detect amphetamines, cocaine, opiates, PCP, marijuana, benzodiazepines, methadone, oxycodone, and more. There’s no appointment needed for a same-day lab order, and turnaround times commonly range from five to seven business days. The 12-panel hair follicle test uses 90 to 120 strands of scalp hair but can include body hair, facial hair, leg hair, or public hair if needed. Call now with any questions and our customer service will happily assist you.