Other causes of failed PEth test for alcohol abuse?

Update: My husband has now received his 3rd positive PEth with one month left in his 5 year probation. 1st was on 4/16. He works in pharmacy and continuously exposed to alcohol based products. He failed the $850 lie detector test but not for alcohol apparently deceptive about opioids per the polygraph admin. Nobody believes he is sober and the board will now probably take his license. Nobody will even entertain that anything else could be causing the positive PEth. This 3rd rest the tech milked his finger and touched the spots. It makes no sense that he shall be responsible if they do not admin the test properly. So basically it appears that his 9 years of college is going to be thrown out the window. This is just a disaster. He has never had any other positive tests for any substance before these 3 PEth tests. We are at a complete loss.

I have had only 1 positive peth barely over the cutoff and for that I'm going through hell. I can't imagine what you are going through trying to defend your position on 3 peth tests. Lawyer up is all I can say and pray at night each night.

I can highly empathize with your plight having watched my wife with these Peth tests. If there is anything that I think is more witchcraft than Peth tests it is the polygraph (based on a lot of first and second hand experience). I honestly am not sure which one I would trust less...

For the Peths you may be too late, but you need to be taking the USDTL one and then running over same day to take a Labcorp blood drawn one (Request-a-Test, Quest, or just call around). My wife was failing the USDTL ones and passing the Labcorp ones same day. Explain that if the USDTL test are accurate... and there is one member on this board that was failing USDTL tests at one lab (same as my wife) and then driving across town and taking USDTL tests at another place and passing them. Again... explain that one.

Toolsd and I have had a lot of discussion about this and the testing methodologies. We both believe something is seriously flawed. The test facilities are not following procedures in many cases and it is effecting these test. And it is ruining people's lives - costing them jobs, kids, and worse.

We pray daily. Since the first test which was 152, right after they forced him to use 70% ethanol hand sanitizer and no hand washing. He has eliminated many hygiene products even though he has always used them. Stopped drinking orange juice. Will now stop eating PB&J bc of “fermented fruit.” I don’t even see the point of paying for all of these other tests that say negative to all substances if the only test for alcohol they give credence to is PEth. One test is not supposed to decide your future it is the collection of tests and history.

I’d love to join any groups about this issue. I am a liver transplant patient. I had ALF non alcohol related. I have always had a clean PETH and this past year it was 124! Insane! I wouldn’t be able to function if I had that much alcohol in me! When it happened I just thought about it being lab error, but what if I ever need another liver and this is on my record!!!?

The more and more people come forward the better. @toolsd @flyboybray I believe are collecting information about people impacted by this faulty testing method to bring forward.

I am so sorry that everyone is going through this situation, all based on a flawed test. The HIMS program is IMO a very confusing and punitive program. I also think it's ridiculous that the person being monitored also has to monitor the test collector. What's next? Does he then have to make sure to monitor the test kit was shipped properly, then does he have to go to USDTL and stand over the shoulder of the lab tech and make sure the sample is being analyzed correct? I mean this is insanity. The HIMS people / monitor want the moniteree to take accountability of their sobriety and testing but to what point. Plus what is a person to do if they refuse to take a Peth test because the collector is not doing it correctly? Does that count against you? This all ridiculous.

I came across a very interesting blood collection system that is being used by HemaXis DB10. It removes the potential of the collector screwing up the DBS paper. Attaching a link. See their video at the bottom.

hemaxis.com/products/hemaxis-db10/

The HIMS program is simply run by amateurs, in every respect. Pilots identified with substance abuse and personality disorders, who embrace the program with eerie enthusiasm become leaders, then act as counselors, doctors and toxicological experts...

The companies let it run wild boasting of ten to one returns on investment.

A number of factors are coming together which is gonna change that. Not the least of which is this ridiculous PETH testing. The amount and ridiculousness of false positives is simply at the point where it cannot be ignored.

Could be relevant for the recent false positives coming out extremely high.

Exposure to methanol creates phosphatydalmethanol (spelling).

And the number of false positives is fairly consistent. It’s just that more and more cases are “public”.

I’ve been seeking out leads on false positives for two years now, and see a small increase possibly caused by covid panic, but not a huge increase.

Indeed it seems nurses are about the most prevalent group, and they’ve been immersed in sanitizers for ever...

Like all mishaps, it’s a chain of events. We are just finally discovering all the links of that chain. Extraneous exposure is but one, and not necessary, link in that chain. Extraneous exposure does increase the odds of a false positive though.

However, unlike ETG, PETH is not normally that sensitive. An analytical error and a not well vetted change in assay is what makes it seem so.