Can a drug test tell the difference between percocet and vicodin?

January 9, 2010 - 6:19 pm 2 Comments

My friend is taking percocet for his back.He ran out of percocet and bought some vicodin from one of our friends.He took a vicodin before his appointment (and all day before) and they tested him.The test came back that he had NO percocet in his system.Do they really have a test to determine you have specifically percocet in his body??If they do…seems very expensive.I just thought they test for the general ones like:opiate,cocaine,thc,etc.

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2 Responses to “Can a drug test tell the difference between percocet and vicodin?”

  1. 20 Year Nurse Says:

    Percocet and Vicodin would both test a simple positive in the opiate category on a drug test.

  2. Pamela R Says:

    The confirmation test (usually GC/MS, or LC/MS/MS) can tell the difference between chemically similar drugs.
    General
    LABs test 1) Initial Test (IMMUNOASSAY)
    2)Confirmation test
    Some labs do
    3)Adulteration test (for cheating agents- bleach,Creatinine,Nitrite,etc )
    Also
    The National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) requires that companies test for five specific categories of drugs.
    (NIDA5)
    · Cocaine – Includes Cocaine, Crack and Benzoylecognine
    · Cannabinoids – Includes Marijuana and Hash
    · Amphetamines – Includes Speed, Methamphetamines and amphetamines
    · Opiates – Includes Heroin, Opium, Codeine and Morphine
    · Phencyclidine – PCP

    Depending on what profession you are in or what business or governmental department you are required to take a drug test for, there may be expansion tests required. These test for additional drugs such as:

    · Barbiturates
    · Hydrocodone
    · Mehqualone
    · Benzodiazepines
    · Methadone
    · Propoxyphene
    · Ethanol
    · MDMA or Ecstasy

    Drugs that can be tested for, but are not commonly tested for include:

    · LSD
    · Tryptamines
    · Phenethylamines
    · Inhalants