A blood test for drugs may be needed not only if you need to conduct a forensic examination. Often, such a clinical examination is resorted to by relatives of a person who has begun to behave differently than before.
Regardless of the reason for testing, the methods for implementing the plan remain identical. Some prefer to use a rapid analysis or test. It is easy to buy in almost every pharmacy or in special departments of some supermarkets. In addition to accessibility, this research format is highly valued for the fact that you do not need to go to specialized clinics, because not everyone knows where you can take an analysis for such purposes. Many are attracted by the price of pharmacy tools for the determination of narcotic substances in the blood. But initially low cost can be deceptive.
Usually a simple pharmacy tool that shows the presence of prohibited substances in the body is adapted to detect only one drug or several of a certain type. Therefore, either you will need to buy a lot of different tests, or the information content of the analyzes will be limited. An example of such a test can be a Multipanel Test – a rapid test for the detection of drugs in saliva or urine.
This option for determining drugs can be used if the patient needs to take a routine blood test for a routine examination or any other ordinary purpose. Such people are interested in whether the laboratory assistant will reveal unusual components in his biological material. The only XNUMX% effective advice for a test to show a negative reaction is not to take any drugs at all.
Anxiety symptoms prompting an analysis
Experts argue that no express method from pharmacy chains will provide complete information, regardless of how much the drug costs. Because of this, it is much more effective not to suffer with the thought: “Will the test show a prohibited substance?”, But to go straight to the diagnostic room.
Family members who suspect that their relative has such a destructive attachment, before sending him to the clinic, you must first determine the correspondence of the characteristic symptoms. Based on circumstantial evidence, it will be more likely to identify drug addiction.
But it’s impossible to say for sure which drug a person is “addicted to” only by external signs. Here it will be necessary to involve an additional extended version of the clinical study. Such a move will be the next measure if a friend or relative has taken illegal substances.
The main signs that a person should be tested for the content of destructive drugs of the narcotic spectrum of action cover:
- too wide or vice versa – too narrow pupils that do not respond to light;
- detached look;
- slurred speech, ranging from a rapid flow of words to the inability to properly build a sentence;
- problems with coordination of movements such as slowness;
- distraction or excessive manifestations of caution;
- instability of the emotional state in the form of sudden changes in mood from irritability to increased sociability.
Indirect evidence may be a change in the circle of acquaintances, changes in appearance for the worse, increased financial demands without clear explanations. Injecting drug users are usually given away by clothes with closed sleeves, which they can wear even in summer. So people try to hide the injection sites by injecting into the veins of the upper extremities.
Classification of analyzes
Confirm or refute the presence of an addiction will allow special diagnostics through blood sampling. It is performed in two ways: quarterly and chemical-toxicological.
The first is aimed at detecting drug use even with a one-time “indulgence”. The test is able to cover a time interval from a month to four.
The chemical-toxicological analogue is not able to please with such a wide spectrum. It is focused on identifying deviations in the use of prohibited substances from 48 to 72 hours. Regardless of which particular option was chosen, for its implementation you will have to come to the laboratory so that the specialist can take blood.
The quarterly format of the study is aimed at detecting the possible ingestion of the following types of drugs in a person:
- opiate;
- cannabinoids;
- cocaine;
- ephedron;
- barbiturate.
This is where the principle of detecting antibodies to given components comes into play. Drugs are not able to take on the function of antigens, since they do not carry any immunogenic activity.
But the human body always reacts by producing natural antigens immediately after the corresponding elements enter it. Due to the fact that antibodies are produced against the created antigens, it is possible to reliably identify possible violations using a quarterly technique. But here it is worth preparing for the fact that the method will cost much more than the classic urine test for the same purposes.
Despite the increased information content, the quarterly approach has some drawbacks. Among them, the inability to reliably determine the moment of drug intoxication is especially distinguished.
This means that no laboratory assistant will be able to find out if hazardous substances were ingested on a particular day. This is explained by the fact that different organisms need different amounts of time to produce antibodies.
Also, the extended method is not suitable if a person took drugs sporadically a few months ago. The dosage will be quantitatively insufficient for the production of antibodies. In this situation, donating blood will be a futile exercise. Much more accurate in this regard is the general chemical-toxicological method, which also allows you to determine the amount of prohibited substances in relation to blood volume. When choosing any of the presented types of research, you will have to wait at least two days.
Verification Efficiency
In addition to blood sampling, sometimes experts suggest using additional research methods, such as checking saliva or hair. The latter are able to retain information about drug use for the longest time. In exceptional cases, even innovative technologies are used to study the washings of objects that the alleged drug addict has touched.
But in all these cases, those who applied for diagnostics expect a rather high amount to be paid, which is why the majority still choose venous blood sampling. To reinforce the results, or to play it safe, narcologists recommend using a classic urine test.
Although the standard protocol for conducting diagnostics involves sampling in a polyclinic, some private clinics offer an identical service at home. It provides for the call of medical staff at the specified address. The specialist will take approximately 5 ml of venous blood, pouring it into a specially labeled tube. Usually it is a container with a red or yellow cap.
Such a study does not provide for any special preparation of a potential patient. It is enough just to deliver the test tube with the collected material to the research center.
If it is not possible to immediately take it to the laboratory, then you can place the container in the refrigerator at a temperature of +4 to +10 degrees. Biological fluid can be stored in such conditions for no more than two days.
Transportation to the hospital should be carried out in a special thermal container in order to comply with the regimen without affecting the final performance. This method of delivery will be especially relevant if you have to transport the test tube in the warm season.
In the cold season, when the street temperature does not rise above ten degrees Celsius, it is allowed to refuse a special container. But then you need to have time to deliver the material within a couple of hours.
Regardless of whether a thermally lined bag is used, the tube must be tightly capped and fixed in a strictly upright position. This will avoid significant blood spillage during transport. After successful delivery, it remains only to fill out the documents if the material was brought by the patient or his relative. Some clinics support an anonymity protocol, but you should clarify the existence of such a practice in advance to avoid misunderstandings.