Drug screening can
be seen as quite a complex topic, so we have explained a few of the
common points to assist our visitors, such as cut-off levels, drug
retention times, etc. If you find that there are any other
areas relating to drug screening that you require assistance with,
please don't hesitate to
contact us.
Other areas of the
site which may be of relevance may be:
When screened for
drugs, patients are tested to see if they exceed a particular cut-off
level. i.e If the sample is Positive (+ve) or Negative (-ve). This is
the same principle as screening against the roadside legal drink drive
limit.
Cut-off levels are
generally different from drug to drug but are based upon the research
and guidance of SAMHSA (The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration in the USA).
Standard cut-off
levels mean that all laboratories and
rapid drug
tests should screen at the same level, so wherever a test is
conducted, the patient will be assessed by the same criteria and
results from one region are easily comparable with those of another.
The cut-off levels
are set at a point that is sufficiently high to rule out environmental
contamination such as passive smoking of Cannabis, etc, and yet low
enough to be sure that a patient must have abstained from the drug to
test negative.
Drug Screening
Retention Times
Different drugs are
detectable in urine for different lengths of time. Factors including
age, height, sex, weight, purity of drug, dose, how often the drug is
used, etc, will all play a role in how long drugs remain detectable in
a patient’s urine sample. Please use the following figures purely as a
guide, as the upper limit can represent extremes:
Alcohol (Breath / Saliva) - 1 hour per unit consumed
Amphetamines - 2 to 6
days
Barbiturates - 3 to 8
days
Benzodiazepines - 2
to 14 days
Cannabis (THC) -
Typically 14 to 28 days but one-off use can be as little as 3 to 5
days
Cocaine - 2 to 5 days
Methadone - 2 to 7
days
Methamphetamines - 2
to 6 days
Opiates - 2 to 5 days
PCP - 2 to 6 days
For some free advice
from a friendly expert on drug retention times,
cross
reacting medication, or any other drug screening issues, please
contact us.
Free literature - wallcharts, consent forms, procedures,
technical data and more.
Free rapid delivery (within the UK) - products despatched
free of charge within 24 hours, unless otherwise notified.
Free technical support - e.g. How long is alcohol detectable
in the body? Procedural assistance, etc.
Product guarantees - we operate a no-quibble refund
or replacement scheme if the products fail to meet their
specifications.
Laboratory support - we offer the services of a
UKAS accredited laboratory to conduct routine screening
tests or to confirm the results of Drug-Aware products.
For technical information on various drugs and more
information relevant to drug testing, please visit our technical
drug information section.
For more information on the literature and accessories
that we can provide to support our drug and alcohol testing
products, please visit our drug
testing accessories page.
Drug-Aware, the Drug-Aware Logo and Your Partners
in Patient Care are all Trade Marks of Drug-Aware Ltd.
Disclaimer -
Whilst Drug-Aware Ltd has made every effort
to ensure that all drug screening information on this web site is current
and accurate, we cannot be held responsible for any losses, damages, costs
and other consequences resulting directly or indirectly from using this
site and any information or material available from it. To the
maximum extent permitted by law, Drug-Aware Ltd excludes all liability to
any person arising directly or indirectly from using this site and any
information or material available from it.