Drugs in Hair

Abstract

In recent years, advances in sensitive analytical techniques have enabled the analysis of drugs in hair which allows a history of drug exposure to be obtained over weeks to months depending on the length of the hair. The advantages of this sample over traditional specimens, such as urine and blood, include noninvasive and ease of collection that can be done under close supervision of law enforcement officers to prevent adulteration or substitution. It is being increasingly used in forensic toxicology as well as in preemployment screening, in clinical applications, and in doping control. Hair analysis may be a useful adjunct to conventional drug testing in urine. This article summarizes toxicological applications of hair analysis in various situations, including child custody, use in drug-dependent persons, doping control, and in drug-facilitated crimes. The article includes details of the proper collection, preparation, and analysis.