Showing A Faint Line On Drug Test: What Does It Mean?

Drug testing has faced many challenges during the pandemic. But thanks to the home drug test kits. The centers at Corpus Christi offer these kits for parents as well as employees. How long do these drug testing results take? They appear within a fraction of seconds! If you are a parent and suspect that your child might be using drugs, you can use such kits for testing them. Or if you are an employer and wish to check the suspect for drug abuse, you can go for such kits to avoid setting up huge drug testing programs without a surety.

But how to read the results on such kits? Does a faint or nearly non-existent line on the kit suggest positive results? Let’s solve all such doubts by diving deep into the possibilities of results that a drug test kit can give you after performing drug testing:

The mechanism to read the results

The drug test kit has two different sections. The first section is the control (C) region where you can see an already marked line. The second is known as the Test (T) region where you can observe the test results. So, let’s understand what is negative and positive result:

Positive results

If a dark line appears in the test region, the result is positive. Elaborating on this, you will clearly see two lines on the result screen and this is when you can determine that the person is consuming drugs. Do not get panic or take the wrong steps by seeing positive lines after performing drug testing on your employer or for yourself. Retest, with drug testing centers and confirm again.

Negative results

If there is no line in the test region and you see a single line on the result screen, the person is free from any type of drug use.

What does a faint line on the screen indicate?

A faint line on the test screen is often mistaken as the indication of positive drug testing results. But this is not the fact! A faint or non-existent line indicates that the results are negative. Also remember that, if the color of the line in the control region exactly matches that in the test region, then and only then, the results are said to be positive. Further, however faint the line may be, the result will always be negative without a clear dark line that resembles the control region.

Why does the line in drug test results appear faint?

Drug test kits have a pre-determined detection level. Most of them follow the levels set by SAMSHA. But for a better outcome, it is advisable to choose those ones that are approved by the FDA for home use. But relying on these kits for checking the number of drugs consumed by the person is never recommended. 

Still, if the faint line appears on the test result screen, here are the reasons behind the same:

Urine drug composition

The composition of urine is determined by the overall health of the person. It can deviate if the person is on some medications. Some medications also resemble the chemical structure of addictive drugs. Further, the amount of fluid consumption can also alter the toxins released in the urine. All these factors can lead to the appearance of a faint line on the test result screen.

Ask the experts

Laboratory technicians are the best people who can give you the correct idea about the drug test results. If you see a faint line on the result screen are confused for the result to be positive, visit these experts to get an accurate idea of the red flags. Also, you can ask them for a scheduled drug test and do the confirmation.

Another way to deal with this issue is directly approaching the SAMSHA approved laboratories. The technicians at such centers will surely help you out interpret the results without any errors. This will save you from unnecessary nervousness.

If you are an employer, you should definitely get the home test kit results of your employees interpreted by the reputed 247 Onsite drug testing center in Corpus Christi.

Wrapping it up

Thus, don’t panic if you see a faint line apart from the control line in the drug test kit results bar. Faint lines are never an indication of positive drug test results. However, if you are still confused, visit a laboratory technician and get his/her opinion.