Psychemedics' patented hair analysis technology is a proven drug testing method which not only detects if drugs of abuse have been used, but also provides information on the quantity and historic pattern of individual drug use. This type of information is not available from any other drug screening procedure. Psychemedics' test detects drugs of abuse for the previous 90 days, while urinalysis will detect use for only the previous 2-3 days for most drugs. Psychemedics' significantly longer testing window results in superior detection rates over urinalysis. In addition, the collection of a hair sample is easier and far less embarrassing than a urine sample.

All initial positives are confirmed using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Test results have been consistently upheld in court. In fact, some court systems currently rely on Psychemedics' technology in their probation programs.

The History of Psychemedics' Technology

Psychemedics' patented technology was pioneered in 1977 by Dr. Werner Baumgartner and Annette Baumgartner. Over ten years of research funded by the National Institute of Justice, the Veteran's Administration, the United States Navy and the American Society for Industrial Security on thousands of test subjects have proven that drugs deposited in hair can be measured by radioimmunoassay and ultrasensitive gas chromatograph/mass spectrometry procedures. The effectiveness of hair analysis for drugs of abuse has been documented in more than 500 scientific publications worldwide.

In 1987 Psychemedics became the world's first laboratory to offer a cost effective method for testing using hair rather than body fluids for the detection of drugs of abuse.

Psychemedics' Patents

Psychemedics is the first company to have been awarded both U.S. and foreign patents for the detection of drugs in hair. The first U.S. and European patent covers the universal drug extraction procedure for the detection of drugs in hair specimens.

The second U.S. patent covers the removal of substances which interfere with the immunochemical screening assay for marijuana. The marijuana screening assay is the most challenging scientific problem of hair analysis.

These patents enable Psychemedics to conduct testing far more effectively than other laboratories claiming the ability to detect drugs through hair analysis. More recently, Psychemedics received both European and Japanese patents for its method of hair analysis.