Central Valley Toxicology (CVT) has from its beginnings consistently kept pace with current analytical methods in forensic toxicology. In the 1980’s CVT routinely used gas chromatography, high pressure liquid chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and thin layer chromatography. In the year 2000, CVT was a leader in routinely applying liquid chromatography-mass-spectrometry to postmortem general drug screening, and now has in regular use both liquid and gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. CVT uses the best technology for a particular type of analysis–for instance, CVT’s directors pioneered the use of high pressure liquid chromatography for blood opiate assays before mass spectrometric methods become practical; as a matter of policy CVT has always done isomer-specific assays for d-methamphetamine–still an additional special test at many laboratories. CVT was one of the first forensic toxicology laboratories to make the transition from radioimmunoassay screening tests to heterogeneous enzyme immunoassay, and performs an unusually large variety of such tests. Other analytical methods used at CVT include but are not limited to infrared, visible and ultraviolet spectroscopy, potentiometric analysis and visible microscopy.
CVT makes the utmost effort to conserve and use appropriately the limited and irreplaceable specimens that are submitted, and retains all specimens an absolute minimum of two years at no extra charge, except in those cases where the client requests their return or they are admitted into evidence.
CVT is committed to assuring that its work meets both the Frye and the Daubert standards for admissibility of scientific evidence in court, as well as to making its reports as useful as possible to its clients.