Replies

You might want to learn a little bit before you comment...

“Why does toxicology testing take so long?

There are several reasons why forensic toxicology testing may take several weeks to complete. Some of these include 1) the range of toxicologic specimens, 2) the complexity of general unknown testing for the many illicit and therapeutic drugs as well as other toxic chemical agents, 3) the importance of the forensic approach to confirmation testing by alternate methods on all initial positive drug findings, 4) the challenge and interpretive value of quantification of drugs, 5) the exchange of information between the toxicologist and the forensic pathologist during the investigation, and 6) the extensive record keeping that is needed for forensic defensibility of the toxicology studies underlying a final report. In addition, some tests may be beyond the scope of expertise in the initial laboratory and specimens will be referred to more specialized laboratories that can only perform those specific tests. Forensic testing requires a “chain of custody” so that for each step, from collection of the specimen to the final report, there is documentation of where the specimen was and who handled it.

Toxicology reports are issued after a death investigation which would include information on any medications the deceased may have been taking or any drugs the deceased may have had access to. Death investigations take some time to gather all the information from the various individuals working on the case or who were involved with the deceased. Under certain circumstances, new information may become available and the toxicologist may have to test for an additional drug, or test another sample before the report is finalized. Toxicology testing requires cooperative work among many professionals making communication and quality paramount.”

http://www.aacc.org/members/divisions/tdm/Pages/ToxFAQs.aspx