Author: Alex Thompson

Urine drug tests: Uses, procedure, detection times, and results

By Jaime R. Herndon, MS, MPHJaime Herndon is a freelance health/medical writer with over a decade of experience writing for the public. There are several considerations to remember when understanding a drug test’s results. Ask the institution that requested the drug test about when you can expect results.

In some cases, the administrator may ask a person to use a particular bathroom stall to take the test. As a study in the journal Analytical Toxicology notes, urine testing is also more likely to detect substance use than other forms of tests, such as saliva tests. Depending on how much marijuana was consumed, it can usually be detected in blood tests within six hours of consumption. After six hours has passed, the concentration of marijuana in the blood decreases significantly. A urine test can sometimes provide the results immediately, whereas the hair test will take some time to be sent out to a lab. Hair follicle tests work because there are blood vessels in hair that drugs can pass through.

Drug testing can be an emergency test, a scheduled test or it may be conducted randomly (for example, to meet ongoing employment requirements). Drug testing may be scheduled ahead of time or done randomly without notice.

What to know about urine drug tests

There are several kinds of drug tests based on the biological sample they use and the types of drugs they detect. Another common use of drug testing is for the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of alcohol use disorder and substance use disorder. As a tool for monitoring, drug testing can help determine treatment adherence, monitor abstinence and detect early relapse. Drugs include legal substances such as alcohol and tobacco, as well as over-the-counter medications, prescription medications and illegal substances. A single drug test can’t determine the frequency and intensity of substance use and, thus, can’t distinguish casual substance use from substance use disorders. A member of an emergency services team may request a urine drug screen if they suspect that a person is behaving strangely or dangerously due to the influence of drugs.

A healthcare provider might also order the test if you’re being prescribed amphetamines or opioids to ensure you’re complying with the prescribed amount and not giving it away or selling it to others. In urine, PCP can be detectable between eight days and, for a chronic user, 30 days. Benzodiazepines are prescription drugs like Valium (diazepam), Klonopin (clonazepam), and Xanax (alprazolam). Usually prescription drugs, these can include sleeping pills and sedatives.

1. A 10-panel drug test will look for 10 of the most common drugs that a person may be abusing.
2. For urine tests, you’ll need to provide a urine specimen collected from your pee into a small cup.
3. The person who carried out the test or a medical review officer will explain the results.
4. The results can help your provider develop a treatment plan that is right for you.

They generally are less sensitive than the formal tests done in a laboratory. This means that a home test could be negative, but a laboratory test could be positive with the same sample. Drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs may request urine drug screens at initial assessments and follow-up appointments. To avoid misinterpreting drug test results, health care providers can use experts in the field. This includes clinical chemists or medical toxicologists at hospitals, clinics, or poison control centers. Expert assistance with toxicology interpretations can improve the accuracy of drug test results.

Can NIDA assist me with interpreting or disputing the results of a drug screen?

More severe cases of drug abuse, such as a drug overdose, may require emergency treatment in a hospital. Results may show whether you are abusing drugs and the severity of the problem. The results can help your provider develop a treatment plan that is right for you. But if drugs show up in your results, it may affect your job, your eligibility to play sports, the outcome of a legal matter, or other parts of your life. If a result is positive, a person may need to take a second test for confirmation. Urine drug screen results usually come back within a few days or on the same day.

Due to the very low levels of substances in the breath air, liquid chromatography—mass spectrometry has to be used to analyze the sample according to a recent publication wherein 12 analytes were investigated. For urine tests, you’ll need to provide a urine specimen collected from your pee into a small cup. Expect to be monitored to ensure you haven’t tampered with the test (for example, by bringing a sample from someone else). Some of these may lead to a false positive, so the staff should know about them ahead of time. Follow the specific instructions given to you, and don’t overhydrate.

Most drugs are analysed in hair samples not as the original psychoactive molecules, but rather as their metabolytes. For example, ethanol is determined as ethyl glucuronide, while cocaine use is confirmed using ecgonine. Testing for metabolytes reduces the likelihood of false positive results due to contamination. A urine sample won’t detect drugs far back for a 10-panel drug test, but the test can also be done with a hair sample that detects substances for up to three months after use. Tests using blood or saliva (reading at the same level as blood) will deliver real-time results of what’s in the bloodstream.

These may include not urinating for a couple of hours before the test or avoiding drinking extra water before the test. Most companies or doctors will work directly with a lab that analyzes the results of the test. Going through them to get the test done is a simple, direct approach. In Victoria, Australia the driver of the car has the option to refuse the drug test. Refusing to undergo a drug test or refusing to undergo a secondary drug test after the first one, triggers an automatic suspension and disqualification for a period of two years and a fine of AUD$1000. The second refusal triggers an automatic suspension and disqualification for a period of four years and an even larger fine.

If a person cannot return their sample to a medical professional within 1 hour, they should seal it in a plastic bag and store it in a refrigerator. Many sporting officials require urine tests to check whether athletes have used performance-enhancing drugs, such as anabolic steroids. A negative result indicates that the drugs tested for are not present or are not present in a high enough quantity to detect. It does not indicate that the person has never used the drugs or that they will not use the drugs in the future. A positive result indicates that the drug or its byproducts are present in the person’s system in detectable amounts. There are some tests that use other substances, such as blood or hair, to test for the drugs.

Presumptive substance testing

The test is usually done within 96 hours (4 days) after the desire for the test is realized. Both a urine sample and a blood sample may be tested.[56] A blood sample is routinely used to detect ethanol/methanol and ASA/paracetamol intoxication. Hair analysis to detect addictive substances has been used by court systems in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and other countries worldwide. In the United States, hair testing has been accepted in court cases as forensic evidence following the Frye Rule, the Federal Rules of Evidence, and the Daubert Rule. As such, hair testing results are legally and scientifically recognized as admissible evidence. [33] Hair testing is commonly used in the USA as pre-employment drug test.

One aliquot is first screened for drugs using an analyzer that performs immunoassay as the initial screen. To ensure the specimen integrity and to detect possible adulterants, additional parameters are tested for.[24] Some test the properties of normal urine, such as, urine creatinine, pH, and specific gravity. If requested by the physician or employer, certain drugs are screened for individually; these are generally drugs part of a chemical class that are, for one of many reasons, considered more habit-forming or of concern. For instance, oxycodone and diamorphine may be tested, both sedative analgesics. NIDA is a biomedical research organization and does not provide personal medical advice, legal consultation, or medical review services to the public.

If your test shows you have or are at risk for a serious drug problem, a long-term treatment plan may be recommended. Learn more about laboratory tests, reference ranges, and understanding results. If you have questions or concerns about a drug test, talk with your provider or the person or organization that is asking for the test. You may be asked to take a drug test for a job, to participate in certain organized sports, or as part of a police investigation or court case. In a hospital emergency room, a provider may order a drug test if you have signs of a possible drug overdose. Drug testing is used to find out whether you have been using or misusing one or more drugs.

The detection window is long and can detect recent drug use within several hours. If your result is positive in the initial screening, the sample may be sent out to a lab to confirm the result. Many workplace testing programs also provide you with the option to have your sample analyzed by a second lab to ensure the results are correct. Drug use screening tests are questionnaires designed to find out if you are abusing drugs.