Types Of Drugs Tests
Different types of drugs tests are conducted to detect the presence and amount of drugs in our body. The types are classified based on the method followed for the test.
URINE BASED TESTS
Urine based types of drugs tests are the most common drug testing methods and in urine tests, various analytical methods are implemented to study the metabolites of drugs in urine.
* IMMUNO ASSAY TECHNIQUE
Immune assay technique is the most common type of urine based drug tests. In these types of drugs tests the principle of antigen-antibody binding is implemented in which selective antigens will be used in the blood sample, which can bind to the drug metabolites. The bound drugs and antigens can later be identified using either radioisotopes or enzymes. Different laboratories have developed their own test methods for immune assay drugs test technique.
The samples that gave positive results can be subjected for more sensitive tests such as gas chromatography.
* THIN LAYER CHROMATOGRAPHY
In thin layer chromatography, the samples are subjected to travel over a thin porous strip and this will leave colored spots on the strip. Different substances travel different distances on the strip and this is used to compare the presence of the drug particle. The drawback of these types of drugs tests are that it doesn’t give any quantitative information about the drug present and can only be used to identify the presence of a drug substance. Moreover there is no specific scale defined to study the strip and the results solely depend on the observation made by the technician.
* GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY AND MASS SPECTROMETRY
These types of drugs tests are considered as the most precise test methods to identify and quantify the drug present in the urine samples. These methods are usually used after a positive test result on the urine sample by the basic tests. This is a two-step procedure in which gas chromatography separates the drug particles into a section and later on their molecular structure is identified using mass spectrometry. This method gives the actual idea about the type of drug present and the amount in which it is present in our body.
HAIR TEST
These types of drugs tests were formulated based on the principle that when the drug samples get circulated through your body, they get filtered by the hair scalp and end up in the hair. This test is very favorable because it gives a permanent record of the drug sample present in our body as long as the hair remains. In this method, around 50 samples of hair strands are collected and are dissolved in a particular solution and later this solution is subjected to analysis.
BLOOD TESTING
These are the types of drugs tests that can be most expensive and complicated but highly appreciated for their accuracy in results. Blood testing gives a result about the amount of drug present in our body at the time of test and is highly used to identify the current intoxication level of a subject.
