Doctors may miss how addiction patients cheat drug tests

By CARLA K. JOHNSON
AP Medical Writer

Doctors may be missing patients who are trying to cheat on tests that check if they are taking medication for opioid addiction. That’s according to a study published Wednesday by JAMA Psychiatry. The researchers found that nearly 8% of these patients sometimes spike their urine by adding their treatment medicine to the samples. Such spiking may go unnoticed by doctors who use rapid tests instead of more sophisticated lab tests. The researchers say doctors shouldn’t cut patients off of the treatment drug for cheating because that could lead to overdose. Instead, a suspicious result should prompt a frank discussion and possibly a higher level of care.