Understanding Your Lab Test: What It Is, How It's Done, and Why It Matters
This test measures barbiturate levels in saliva to monitor medication use or detect drug exposure.
{"Detects barbiturate drugs in oral fluid","Used for therapeutic drug monitoring and compliance testing","Non-invasive sample collection","Helps healthcare providers adjust medication dosages","Can detect recent drug use"}
Key facts at a glance
- LOINC
- 109639-5
- Short code
- BARBSAL
- Synonyms
- Barbiturates Msmt Sal
- Category
- chemistry
- Sample
- serum
- Container
- Saliva/oral fluid collection device (e.g., Quantisal, Intercept, Oral-Eze, or equivalent collection tube with buffer); sterile, tamper-evident container preferred for forensic or workplace drug testing
- Units
- N/A
- Ref low
- 0
- Ref high
- 20
- Critical range
- — – 50 N/A
- Fasting
- false
- Population
- adult
- Sex
- all
- Age range
- 0–120 years
- Method
- Immunoassay (e.g., Enzyme-Multiplied Immunoassay Technique [EMIT] or Lateral Flow Immunoassay); confirmation by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) or Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)
- CPT
- 80307
- SNOMED
- 395143008
- Specimen volume
- 1-2 mL of oral fluid (minimum 0.5 mL neat saliva plus collection device buffer)
- Stability
- Room temperature: 7 days; Refrigerated (2-8°C): 14 days; Frozen (-20°C or lower): 30 days. Avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles.
- Hemolysis max
- 500
- Lipemia max
- 1000
- Icterus max
- 500
- TAT
- 24–72 hours
- Order
- routine
This test is a laboratory analysis that helps your healthcare provider evaluate your health by measuring specific substances or markers in a sample from your body. The results provide important information about how well your organs are working and can help detect, diagnose, or monitor a wide range of medical conditions.
The Saliva Barbiturate Test measures the amount of barbiturate drugs in your saliva (oral fluid). Barbiturates are medications that act on the central nervous system, commonly prescribed for conditions such as seizures, anxiety, insomnia, and as sedatives before surgery. This test helps healthcare providers monitor drug levels in patients taking these medications.
The test is performed by collecting a small sample, most often a blood draw from a vein in your arm or a urine sample, depending on what your provider has ordered. The collection usually takes only a few minutes, and the sample is then sent to a laboratory where it is analyzed and your results are prepared for your provider to review.
A healthcare professional will collect a saliva sample by placing a special absorbent swab or device inside your mouth to collect oral fluid. The sample is then sent to a laboratory for analysis. This method is quick, non-invasive, and can be performed in a clinic or at home under supervision.
This test is important because it gives your healthcare team objective information about your health that cannot be gathered from a physical exam alone. Early detection of abnormalities allows for timely treatment, helps track ongoing conditions over time, and guides your provider in making the best decisions about your care.
This test is important for several reasons: it helps doctors ensure that medication levels are within the therapeutic range (not too low to be ineffective, not too high to cause toxicity), monitors patient compliance with prescribed barbiturate therapy, and can be used in addiction medicine to detect misuse or unauthorized use of these controlled substances.
Reference range
Negative: < cutoff (typically 20 ng/mL for screening). Confirmatory testing recommended for all presumptive positive results. Quantitative results are reported in ng/mL or μg/L.N/A
No fasting required. Patient should rinse mouth with water and avoid eating, drinking, smoking, or chewing gum for at least 10-15 minutes prior to specimen collection. Do not collect if oral contamination from medications is suspected.
Clinical interpretation
How abnormal results are interpreted and what conditions they suggest.
Barbiturate testing in saliva is clinically significant for therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM), particularly in patients with epilepsy on phenobarbital therapy or those using barbiturates for sedation. It helps optimize dosing, prevent toxicity, and assess treatment adherence. The test may also be used in forensic or occupational settings where detection of substance use is required.
Abnormal results may indicate subtherapeutic levels (risk of seizure recurrence), therapeutic levels (good control), or supratherapeutic/toxic levels (risk of overdose). Symptoms of barbiturate toxicity include confusion, drowsiness, slurred speech, and slowed breathing.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to prepare for this test?
Are there any risks?
How long does it take to get results?
What do the results mean?
Sources
- 1
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Click any link to access the full source. PubMed Central (PMC) links provide free full-text access.
This information is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
This content is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the guidance of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you have about a medical condition, and never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you read here.
If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your local emergency number or go to the nearest emergency department immediately.
Medically reviewed by WellAlly Editorial Team Last reviewed August 16, 2026. · Read our editorial policy