| Type | Public (NASDAQ: PMD) |
|---|---|
| Founded | U.S. |
| Headquarters | Acton, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Key people | Raymond C. Kubacki (CEO) |
| Products | Tests for drugs of abuse. |
| Services | Clinical laboratory |
| Website | Psychemedics.com |
Psychemedics Corporation (NASDAQ: PMD) is a United States corporation which provides patented, FDA-cleared, CAP certified clinical laboratory services for the detection of drugs of abuse.[1][2][3] The company's corporate headquarters are located in Acton, Massachusetts and its laboratory operations are located in Culver City, California.
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Hair testing analyzes the hair shaft, rather than body fluids like urine or saliva, to determine whether illegal drugs are present. Compared to analysis of body fluids, hair testing is highly resistant to evasion by adulterating or substituting samples, or by simply abstaining from drug use for a few days. PsychemedicsÂ’ proprietary method for detecting drugs in hair uses radioimmunoassay and state-of-the-art GC/MS/MS or LC/MS/MS confirmation to measure the drug molecules and metabolites permanently entrapped in hair which were incorporated following ingestion. This technology offers significantly greater detection ability than other methods of analyzing hair .
The Psychemedics technology includes tests for cocaine, marijuana, opiates (including heroin and oxycodone), methamphetamine, Ecstasy (MDMA), Eve (MDEA) and phencyclidine (PCP). A standard test of approximately one-and-one-half inches of head hair cut close to the scalp can provide a several month window to detect drug ingestion. It takes approximately 5–7 days from the time of drug use for the affected hair to grow above the scalp.