Drug Testing Information

Saliva Drug Tests, or Oral Fluid Drug Tests, are starting to be used more commonly by employers. These tests offer better accuracy in detecting very recent drug use. They are not very efficient in detecting drug use that may have taken place longer than a week ago. Saliva drug tests are also harder for people to "cheat" on, or adulterate, in order to pass a drug test they might normally fail. This makes saliva drug testing very efficient for employers who would like to test their employees for drug use while in the workplace, assuming the drugs were used within a few days.

A Saliva Test is typically performed using a swab, which is placed into a person's mouth, and rolled around the gums to collect saliva. If it's a lab test, the swab is usually placed in a sealed container, such as a plastic film bag, and mailed away to be tested. If it's a home drug test, the swab may have indicators on it which will display whether it detects any drugs or not. As stated before, a saliva drug test is not very accurate for detecting drugs that were taken longer than a few days ago. To detect drugs that were taken longer than 2 days ago, a Urine Drug Test or a Hair Follicle Drug Test is much more accurate.

Detection Time Frames For Oral Fluid Drug Test (According to Labcorp)