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Has anyone you've ever known gotten a false positive on a drug test?

A friend of mine just told me their sister tested positive for cocaine, which I read, unlike most other drugs, almost never gives a false positive. The friend feels certain it was a false positive. I'm not buying it. 

Any experiences in this realm? 

Posted - May 7, 2019
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Responses


  • 34251
    No. I did fail a test once. I was injured at work and they sent me to the hospital for stitches. A drug test was required by the company.  The hospital waited until after they gave me pain killers before drawing blood.  

    I had to bring in a copy of my prescription a few days later. The HR woman said she knew I was safe but there were other workers who would not be able to pass. 

    But I do remember Myth Busters do an experiment that showed poppy seeds could cause a false positive. I would recommend a 2nd test making sure no poppy seeds in the mix.
      May 7, 2019 2:01 PM MDT
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  • Poppies cause a positive only for opiates.
      May 7, 2019 4:37 PM MDT
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  • 34251
    Oops. Shows what I know about all of that. 

    But I did google and some antibiotics can cause false positives for cocaine. 

    https://www.livestrong.com/article/161857-drugs-that-can-cause-false-positive-drug-tests/

      May 7, 2019 5:26 PM MDT
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  • What about the show cops?  


    I like this link, it list all  the things that cause lad positives.  Nobody tests for that outside of the Pentagon..
      May 7, 2019 5:48 PM MDT
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  • 7939
    Yes. I saw that too. I asked my friend if his sister was on antibiotics and the sister said "no." Plus, there are two different tests they can give. Only one gives false positives for cocaine when specific antibiotics are used. Doctors are supposed to retest using the second version when there's a positive result to be sure. If the doctor was diligent, she tested positive using both methods. 
      May 8, 2019 5:33 PM MDT
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  • 46117
    All I know is the 80's rumor that turned out to be true, about people getting false positives on heroin because they had poppy seeds in their diet.  LOL

    It was a Sienfeld episode too.  Elaine got busted for poppy seeds.   I just found this on the web......

    Hey JedKampe,

    There are numerous drugs and conditions that can cause a false positive for cocaine not to mention human error.

    "Substances that can cause a false positive drug test result:
    Amoxicillin is an antibiotic in the penicillin group of drugs. It fights bacteria in your body. Ampicillin is another antibiotic similar to amoxicillin. Local anesthetics obtained from cocaine, excluding lidocaine and Novocain
    Tonic water

    Conditions that can cause a drug test to be a false positive
    Liver infection or disease
    kidney infection or disease
    diabetes"

    Do you drink tonic water by chance? Taken a penicillin type antibiotic or have diabetes?

    Hope you find your answer,

    Laurie

    This post was edited by WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH at May 8, 2019 5:33 PM MDT
      May 7, 2019 2:06 PM MDT
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  • 17592
    Yes, I remember a guy getting a false positive back in the 70s.  The culprit turned out to be poppy seed salad dressing from a restaurant downtown.
      May 7, 2019 4:07 PM MDT
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  • 5354
    How can you get a false positive for cocaine if there is no cocaine?
      May 7, 2019 11:43 PM MDT
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  • 17592
    Quite a few drugs  cause a cocaine false positive.  This is easy to research.
      May 8, 2019 12:16 AM MDT
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  • 7939
    M2C mentioned this earlier. Cocaine rarely gives false positives, but certain antibiotics can result in a false positive if the doctor used a specific type of test. If the doc was diligent, he should have retested using an alternate test that doesn't have the same failing. I don't know if he did or not. 
      May 8, 2019 5:35 PM MDT
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  • 16763
    If you have visited a dentist in the past 24hrs, mention it to the tester. Most dental anaesthetics are cocaine-derived.
      May 8, 2019 8:42 PM MDT
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  • 7939
    That's actually a common misconception. At least in the US, they aren't. Here, the most common medication is lidocaine (Xylocaine). When patients can't get lido because of the epinephrine, they get Mepivicaine (Carbocaine). Generally speaking, that is. Obviously, each dentist will use his or her preferred one, but those are the ones all the dentists I worked for used. 

    There aren't any reputable sources which back up the claim that they can cause false positives. Lots of reports from individuals who say they or their loved one failed a drug test because of dental anesthetics, but I feel like that's usually people grasping at straws. No study I've ever found has backed up their claims. It's the opposite. 

    Here's more info on that:
    https://cen.acs.org/articles/87/i47/Drug-Testing-CaineDrugs.html
    https://cecm.usp.br/~alex/anestesicos/local_anesthetics.htm#Do%20any%20local%20anesthetics%20cause%20false%20positive%20drug%20tests?
      May 8, 2019 9:29 PM MDT
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  • 22891
    not that i know of and ive never done drugs
      May 12, 2019 4:31 PM MDT
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