Posts by hcoker@dna-worldwide.co.uk
How does cosmetic treatment impact hair alcohol and drugs tests
Cosmetic treatments: Hair is a robust sample for testing drugs and alcohol and has 3 morphological regions; the cuticle, cortex and medulla. The cuticle is the outer part of the hair, and it consists of a sheath of overlapping scale cells that protect the bulk of the hair, the cortex. The... Read More
How to avoid a false positive drug test and the factors that can cause it
A common question that the team at DNA Legal receive is what will cause a false positive drugs test? You may have read in one of our other blog posts the fact that that we’ve mentioned one of the flaws in drug testing is that there is such a thing as a ‘false positive’ if the laboratory does not... Read More
Job Sectors and their Workplace Drug & Alcohol Testing: Procedures and Policies
In the UK, the extent of drug & alcohol abuse in the workplace is not often discussed yet over one million people per year are estimated to be abusing drugs & alcohol whilst at work. However, most workplace testing policies only apply to industries where safety is of the utmost... Read More
Why alcohol markers EtG and FAEE (EtPa) cannot be segmented in hair
Introduction: Hair is used as a robust sample for drug and alcohol testing. Due to the way it grows and the way drugs and alcohol are absorbed into the hair, it can provide a wide range of information about the drug and alcohol consumption history of an individual. Unlike drug testing in head... Read More
What is a cut-off level and how do DNA Legal use them in their expert reports
What is a cut-off level? Cut off levels are useful tools for the understanding of drug results. This is because the cut off levels can minimise the chances of false positive results. False positive results can occur from external contamination due to environmental exposure, such as... Read More