Question:
I am currently trying to get a better understanding of etg testing. Is there a test which measures etg in hair specimens, and if so, is this test used in abstinence programs? I'm reading conflicting reports in the internet. Thanks so much. MS
Answer:
EtG hair testing is relatively new. Only one lab in USA might be doing hair EtG commercially (USDTL in Chicago). In my opinion it's not a good test to verify abstinence (which is one of the main reasons to utilize urine EtG testing) because it doesn't pickup small amounts of drinking (ie you must drink quit a bit to get the hair etg to turn positive - nobody knows how much yet as the research hasn't been performed). Hair EtG testing might be a good tool for research as hair levels have been shown to correlate with amount of drinking over time. There's a company in England claiming in their ads that hair EtG is as good as urine EtG for verifying abstinence. This is just absolutely unproven and not likely. (ie I think they are making false claims).