Health Tech - Drug Testing News

Drug detection times indicate the period after you last took a drug, that drug testing can reveal its presence or resulting metabolites in your specimen. The amount of time that a drug metabolite remains detectable in urine can vary, depending on the following factors:

Amount and Frequency of Use:
Single, isolated, small doses are generally detectable at the lower boundary. Chronic and long-term use typically result in detection periods near or at the upper boundary.

Metabolic Rate:
Individuals with slower body metabolism are prone to longer drug detection periods.

Body Mass:
In general, human metabolism slows with increased body mass, resulting in longer drug detection periods. In addition, THC (marijuana's active ingredient) and PCP are known to accumulate in fatty lipid tissue. Chronic users, physically inactive users, and individuals with a high percentage of body fat in relation to total body mass are prone to longer drug detection periods for THC and PCP.

Age:
In general, human metabolism slows with age, resulting in longer drug detection periods.

Overall Health:
In general, human metabolism slows during periods of deteriorating health, resulting in longer drug detection periods.

Drug Tolerance:
Users typically metabolize a drug faster once a tolerance to the drug is established.

Urine pH:
Urine pH can impact drug detection periods. Typically, highly acidic urine results in shorter drug detection periods.

Drug detection times are also affected by the type of specimen, the testing method, and cutoff levels. More information can be found in our Drug Testing Books section.

Substance	Proprietary or Street Names	Medical Uses	Route of Administration	DEA Schedule*	Drug Detection Times
*Stimulants*
Amphetamine	Biphetamine, Dexedrine; Black Beauties, Crosses, Hearts	Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), obesity, narcolepsy	Injected, oral, smoked, sniffed	II	1-2 days
Cocaine	Coke, Crack, Flake, Rocks, Snow	Local anesthetic, vasoconstrictor	Injected, smoked, sniffed	II	1-4 days
Methamphetamine	Desoxyn; Crank, Crystal, Glass, Ice, Speed	ADHD, obesity, narcolepsy	Injected, oral, smoked, sniffed	II	1-2 days
Methylphenidate	Ritalin	ADHD, narcolepsy	Injected, oral	II	1-2 days
Nicotine	Habitrol patch, Nicorette gum, Nicotrol spray, Prostep patch; Cigars, Cigarettes, Smokeless tobacco, Snuff, Spit tobacco	Treatment for nicotine dependence	Smoked, sniffed, oral, transdermal	Not Scheduled	1-2 days
*Hallucinogens and Other Compounds*
LSD	Acid, Microdot	None	Oral	I	8 hours
Mescaline	Buttons, Cactus, Mesc, Peyote	None	Oral	I	2-3 days
Phencyclidine & Analogs	PCP; Angel Dust, Boat, Hog, Love Boat	Anesthetic (veterinary)	Injected, oral, smoked	I, II	2-8 days
Psilocybin	Magic Mushroom, Purple Passion, Shrooms	None	Oral	I	8 hours
Amphetamine variants	DOB, DOM, MDA, MDMA; Adam, Ecstasy, STP, XTC	None	Oral	I	1-2 days
Marijuana	Blunt, Grass, Herb, Pot, Reefer, Sinsemilla, Smoke, Weed	None	Oral, smoked	I	1 day - 5 weeks
Hashish	Hash	None	Oral, smoked	I	1 day - 5 weeks
Tetrahydrocannabinol	Marinol, THC	Antiemetic	Oral, smoked	I, II	1 day - 5 weeks
Anabolic Steroids	Testosterone (T/E ratio), Stanazolol, Nandrolene	Hormone Replacement Therapy	Oral, injected	III	Oral: up to 3 weeks (for testosterone and others); Injected: up to 3 months (Nandrolene up to 9 months)
*Opioids and Morphine Derivatives*
Codeine	Tylenol w/codeine, Robitussin A-C, Empirin w/codeine, Fiorinal w/codeine	Analgesic, antitussive	Injected, oral	II, III, IV	1-2 days
Heroin	Diacetylmorphine; Horse, Smack	None	Injected, smoked, sniffed	I	1-2 days
Methadone	Amidone, Dolophine, Methadose	Analgesic, treatment for opiate dependence	Injected, oral	II	1 day - 1 week
Morphine	Roxanol, Duramorph	Analgesic	Injected, oral, smoked	II, III	1-2 days
Opium	Laudanum, Paregoric; Dover's Powder	Analgesic, antidiarrheal	Oral, smoked	II, III, V	1-2 days
*Depressants*
Alcohol	Beer, Wine, Liquor	Antidote for methanol poisoning	Oral	Not Scheduled	6-10 hours
Barbiturates	Amytal, Nembutal, Seconal, Phenobarbital; Barbs	Anesthetic, anticonvulsant, hypnotic, sedative	Injected, oral	II, III, IV	2-10 days
Benzodiazepines	Ativan, Halcion, Librium, Rohypnol, Valium; Roofies, Tranks, Xanax	Antianxiety, anticonvulsant, hypnotic, sedative	Injected, oral	IV	1-6 weeks
Methaqualone	Quaalude, Ludes	None	Oral	I	2 weeks

Published by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) – September 1999

Note: In a small percentage of cases, users may test positive longer than times shown - most notably in cases of long-term chronic abuse, in individuals with significant body mass and/or body fat, and in individuals with health related issues resulting in abnormally slow body metabolism.