Drug Abuse and Drug Testing FAQs
Q: What are the so-called Date Rape Drugs and how do they work?
A: Rohypnol and GHB. Rohypnol is a sleeping pill marketed by Roche Pharmaceuticals. The drug is a very potent tranquilizer similar to Valium, but much, much stronger. Rohypnol falls in the general drug class of Benzodiazepines. Rohypnol like all benzodiazepine drugs produces a sedative effect, amnesia, muscle relaxation and a slowing of psychomotor responses. The drug is often distributed on the street in its pharmaceutical packaging which makes it appear legitimate and legal. Rohypnol is reportedly sold for $2.00 to $4.00 per tablet. Originally, illicit use of Rohypnol was reported in Europe in the late 1970's while first reports of Rohypnol use in the United States began in the early 1990's. Rohypnol side effects begin approximately 20-30 minutes after taking the drug and peak within two hours. The half life of system induced Rohypnol, dependent on dosage is up to 8 hours. Symptoms of Rohypnol use include decreased blood pressure, black outs (memory loss), disorientation, blurred vision, aggressive behavior, loss of inhibitions, and extreme anxiety. Rohypnol is known as a rape drug because perpetrators reportedly slip it into a victim's drink causing them to blackout. Rohypnol takes away a victim's normal inhibitions, leaving the victim helpless and blocking the memory of a rape or assault.
GHB (Gamma-Hydroxybutyerate) Originally developed as an anesthetic, GHB is a naturally occurring 4-carbon molecule sold in powdered, liquid or capsule form. GHB usually is tasteless, but may be recognized at times by a salty taste. GHB was formerly sold by health-food stores and gyms as a sleep aid, anabolic agent, fat burner, enhancer of muscle definition and natural psychedelic. GHB was first synthesized in 1960 by a French researcher. It has been used in Europe as a general anesthetic, a treatment for insomnia and narcolepsy, an aid to childbirth and a treatment for alcoholism and alcohol withdrawal syndrome. In the last few years it has been gaining popularity as a "recreational" drug offering an alcohol-like, hangover free "high" with possible pro-sexual effects (dis-inhibition often occurs and inhibitions are extremely suppressed). GHB side effects are usually felt within 5 to 20 minutes after ingestion and they usually last no more than two to three hours. The effects of GHB are unpredictable and very dose-dependent. Sleep paralysis, agitation, delusions and hallucination have all been reported. Other effects include excessive salivation, decreased gag reflex and vomiting in 30 to 50 percent of users. Dizziness may occur for up to two weeks post ingestion. GHB can cause severe reactions when combined with alcohol, benzodiazepines, opiates, anticonvulsant and allergy remedies.
Q: What is my teenager likely to call these drugs?
A: Common street names for drugs:
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| Amphetamine |
Speed, amp, bennies, black beauties, chalk, uppers, hi, speed balls, beans, hiballs, beenie babies
|
| Methamphetamine | Crystal, meth, ice, glass, speed, icebergs, bergs, ecstasy
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| Cocaine | Coke, crank, snow, flake, crack, blow, rock, line, snuff, sugar, snort, stones |
| Marijuana | Pot, weed, herb, bud, MJ, doobie, reefer, joint, blunts, grass, rope, hemp, roach |
| Phencyclidine (PCP) | Angel dust, sherms, star dust, magic dust, dust, silver/gold glitters |
| Opiates (heroin) | Horse, smack, hairy hombre, H, scag, jones, fix
|
| Barbiturates Benzodiazepines | Downers, uppers, highway, lows, reds |
| GHB (Gamma-Hydroxybutyerate) | G, Liquid X, Liquid E, Scoop, Soap, Gook, Grievous Bodily Harm, Georgia Home Boy, Natural Sleep-500, Easy Lay or Gamma 10 |
| Rohypnol | roofies, Roche, R-2, rib and rope |
Q: How long after cocaine use can it be detected in the urine?
A: Cocaine is excreted in the urine primarily as benzoylecgonine in a short period of time. Benzoylecgonine can be generally detected for 24 to 60 hours after cocaine use or exposure. Exact clearance rate times can't be determined since the metabolic rate is individualized depending on weight and other factors.
Q: In general, what are the drug detection periods for the most abused drugs and how long after use can drug tests detect drug presence or use?
A: Drug of abuse testing by blood, urine, saliva or any other method (except forensic hair analysis) is designed only to detect whether or not a specific drug or drug metabolite is present at the time the test is performed. While there are very broad estimates as to how long a particular drug may have been in the system, no drug test, regardless of method, is intended to include a time variable. Many factors unique to the individual being tested determine the actual half-life of the particular drug including such variables as age, weight, body fat index, sex, metabolic rate, overall health and amount of drug consumed over what period of time. Therefore, no conclusions can be drawn as to when a particular drug was taken or how much was consumed with any type of drug of abuse test. The following chart illustrates typical drug detection periods. For reasons noted, the range stated is necessarily broad. Generally however, chronic use of high potency drugs by individuals with a high body fat count, low metabolism rate (older) and in poor general health will place drug clearance periods at the higher range. To re-emphasize, it should be clearly understood that drug tests are not intended to determine when drugs were used, only whether the drug screened for is present at the time the test is performed. It should also be clearly understood that complete abstinence from the target drug is required from the start of the "minimum" to the end of the "maximum" detection period to clear the user's system completely.
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TYPICAL DRUG DETECTION/CLEARANCE TIMES
| Target Drug | Minimum | Maximum |
| Alcohol | 0-4 hours | <=12-24 hours |
| Amphetamines | 2-7 hours | 2-4 days |
| Anabolic Steroids | 4-6 hours | Oral: 2-3 weeks Injected: 1-3 months (Naldrolene 8 months+)
|
| Barbiturates | 2-4 hours | Short acting type (Pentobarbital, Alphenal, Amobarbital, Allobarbital, Butethal, Secobarbital) 1-4 days Long acting type (Phenobarbital, Barbital) 2-3 weeks or longer
|
| Benzodiazepines | 2-7 hours | Infrequent user: 3 days Chronic user: 4-6 weeks
|
| Cannabinoids (THC-Marijuana)* | 6-18 hours | *Infrequent user: up to 10 days
Chronic user:30 days or longer |
| Cocaine Metabolite | 1-4 hours | 2-4 days |
| LSD | 2 hours | 1-4 days |
| Mescaline | 1-2 hours | 2-4 days
|
| Methadone | 2 hours | 2-6 days |
| Methamphetamines |
1-3 hours | 2-4 days |
| Methaqualone | 3-8 hours | Up to 10 days |
| MDMA (ecstasy) | 1 hour | 2-3 days |
| Nicotine (Tobacco)** |
4-6 hours | **Infrequent user: 2-3 days Chronic user: 7 to 14 days |
| Opiates (Heroin, Morphine, Codeine) | 2 hours | 2-3 days |
| Phencyclidine (PCP)* | 5-7 hours |
*Infrequent user: 6-8 days Chronic user: 21-28 days+ |
| Propoxyphene | 4-6 hours |
3-6 days |
| Psilocybin (Mushrooms) | 2 hours | 1-3 days |
| Rohypnol
| 1 hour | < =12 hours |
| GHB | 1 hour | < =12 hours |
* THC
and PCP in particular are stored by the system in the fatty lipid
tissue and are gradually released into the blood stream until
cleared. For chronic users with a high body fat count, this process
can take several weeks.
** Nicotine is one of the most addictive
drugs known. Consequently most users of nicotine are chronic users
by default. Nicotine consumption includes all forms of the drug
including tobacco, snuff, transdermal patches and
gum.
Q: If a drug test is positive, can you determine how long ago the drug was taken and over what period of time?
A: No. Drug of abuse testing by blood, urine, or saliva can only detect whether or not a specific drug or drug metabolite is present at the time the test is performed. While there are very broad estimates (see chart above) as to how long a particular drug may have been in the system, no fluid based drug test, regardless of method, is intended to include a time variable. Many factors unique to the individual being tested determine the actual half-life of the particular drug including such variables as age, weight, sex, metabolic rate, overall health, amount of drug consumed over what period of time, etc. Therefore, no conclusions can be drawn as to when a particular drug was taken or how much was consumed with these types of drug of abuse tests. A forensic hair core analysis for drugs can be utilized to determine historical drug use up to 90 days. See the PDT-90™ forensic drug testing service.
Q: What is the difference between heroin and morphine?
A: Heroin, morphine and codeine are opiates derived from the resin of the opium poppy. Heroin is quickly metabolized to morphine. The body also changes codeine (used in some cold medicines) to morphine. Thus, the presence of morphine in the urine indicates heroin, morphine and/or codeine use.
Q: What does THC mean?
A: THC is an abbreviation for 11-nor-delta9 Tetrahydrocannibinol-9-carboxylic acid, the primary metabolite of Marijuana. Marijuana is a hallucinogenic agent derived from the leaves, flowers or seeds of the hemp plant. In general, the production and "curing" of the marijuana plant into its useable form closely resembles that of tobacco. Marijuana is almost always smoked and inhaled into the lungs where it is quickly metabolized (or changed) by the body into 11-nor-delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid which is excreted in the urine.
Q. What is the difference between morphine, heroin and codeine?
A: Chemically, nothing. All three of these drugs are derived from opium or the opium chemical structure and are in the Opiate class of drugs. The difference is primarily in the manner in which opium is refined or synthetically manufactured and the form and method of delivery.
Q: What is the difference between Methamphetamine and Amphetamine?
A: Both amphetamine and methamphetamine are potent symphathominetic agents. Methamphetamine is the parent drug. It metabolizes (or changes) into amphetamine in the body. Methamphetamine and/or amphetamine are excreted in the urine. A positive result for Amphetamine can also be interpreted as a positive test for methamphetamine.
Q: What is Ecstasy?
A. Ecstasy (MDMA) has recently become a popular recreational drug among teenagers and young adults. Ecstasy is refined processed form of amphetamine with a chemical structure closely resembling methamphetamine. Any test with a target screen for methamphetamine should detect Ecstasy.
Q: What does PCP mean?
A: PCP is an abbreviation of phencyclidine which is an arylcyclohexylamine. One street name is "angel dust".
Q: What drugs could interfere and cause a positive morphine (opiates) test?
A: Codeine and Meperidine are structurally related to morphine therefore causing positive results. Codeine is a commonly prescribed pain medication and is also the active ingredient in some prescription cough medicines. These forms of codeine can also be addictive and abused.
Q: What are drug test sensitivity cut-off levels established as standard by the NIDA, WHO and SAMHSA for the different drugs of abuse?
A: The table below indicates the standardized threshold concentration levels for lateral flow immunoassay tests established by the international regulating authorities. These levels are reviewed and updated periodically to conform to new data on drug development, technology and testing statistics. Concentration is expressed in nanograms per milliliter solution.
|
| Symbol | Target Drug/Metabolite | Conc |
| THC | marijuana/cannabis | 50 ng/ml |
| COC | cocaine/benzoylecgonine | 300 ng/ml |
| PCP | phencyclidine | 25 ng/ml |
| OPI | opiates/morphine |
2000 ng/ml |
| MET | methamphetamine | 1000 ng/ml |
| AMP |
amphetamine | 1000 ng/ml |
| MTD | methadone | 300 ng/ml |
| BAR | barbiturates | 300 ng/ml |
| BZO | benzodiazepines |
300 ng/ml |
| TCA | tricyclic antidepressants | 30 ng/ml |
Q: What should I do if there is no control line appearing when I perform the test?
A: Repeat the test, carefully following the written procedure. The most common cause for a control line not developing or appearing is failure to add sufficient urine sample to complete full migration through the test panels. 93.8% of reported incidents regarding unexpected results, lack of a control line or test integrity are the result of user error or test contamination at the point of testing.
Q: How long can the urine specimen be stored before testing ?
A: Specimens can be stored in refrigerators at 2 to 8° C for up to two (2) days (48 hours) or frozen at 0° C, before testing. However, it is strongly recommend testing the sample as soon as possible after collection.
Q Will commonly ingested substances such as vitamins, penicillin, aspirin, caffeine and acetaminophen (Tylenol), affect the results?
A: No. The tests are drug and drug metabolite specific. Because these commonly ingested substances are chemically and structurally different after metabolized by the body from the drugs being tested for, they will under most circumstances not interfere with or compromise test results.
Q: What will the control region look like if the test is working ?
A: The control line should always appear regardless of the presence of drugs or metabolites. If the control line does not appear then all results are invalid.
Q: My teenager tests positive for THC but claims exposure to "second hand smoke". Is this possible?
A: No. Urine concentrations of THC above the cutoff sensitivity level of the test, or a positive result, are not possible by exposure to second hand smoke.
Q: My teenager has a positive test for opiates but claims eating poppy seed bagels or other food products containing poppy seeds. Can this happen?
A: If the sensitivity cutoff level of the test is the revised standard of 2000 ng/ml OPI, this is not possible. Sensitivity standards were raised in 2000 from 300 ng/ml to 2000 ng/ml OPI to eliminate the possibility of false positive results that were possible from consumption of large quantities of poppy seeds or poppy seed paste at the lower sensitivity level.
Q. What different types of Drug Tests are there?
A: Many. Please see the
drug tests page or
select the button below.
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