Oral Fluid Testing 

While not the preferred method of testing for NZDDA because there is no New Zealand Standard, it is used by some companies still.

Oral fluid consists of saliva plus many other fluids such as sputum from the lungs and throat, and nasal drainage etc. Drugs will permeate the body, irrespective of whether they are ingested, snorted or swallowed. Therefore any oral fluid can be used for drug testing, not just saliva.

Oral fluid is very close to blood serum, so if it’s in the oral fluid it’s in the blood. And of course if it’s in the blood it’s in the brain too, and so the person is deemed ‘at risk’ by the drug.  Technology for oral fluid drug testing has improved over the years but NZDDA believes saliva testing still has a long way to come to be relied on in any case involving punitive action against an employee.

Please note there is currently no oral fluid screening devices in the world that can achieve the target concentrations listed in the AS 4760:2006 which is the Australian Oral Fluid standard