AT-HOME DRUG TEST KITS CATCHING ON

Nearly half of today's teens have used drugs. And a small but growing
number of parents are trying at-home drug tests to figure out if their
child might be in the wrong half.

Since the home-testing kits were introduced four years ago, sales to
parents have grown to about $10 million to $12 million a year, according to
industry estimates. While the numbers are still small, there is a sharp
upward trend.

The tests have been available since 1999, but awareness of them has grown
since the Supreme Court last year cleared the way for schools to test
children in certain activities. Closely held San Diego-based Phamatech,
maker of the At Home brand, estimates that currently only about 5 percent
of consumers know about the tests, but "certainly awareness is going to
grow," says Phamatech spokesman Carl Mongiovi.

To that end, Phamatech is sending information about its products to more
than 5,000 U.S. anti-drug groups. The company has also hooked up as a
sponsor with the National Association of Drug Court Professionals, which
sends info about the company to its members., who work within a special
judiciary system that emphasizes rehab for some drug offenders, aiming to
keep them out of jail.

Phamatech, which develops medical diagnostic devices, is hoping that the
drug court workers will recommend the at-home tests to people who come
through the drug court system.

The kits, which range from $15 to $30 for a one-test package, screen urine
for the presence of marijuana, cocaine, opiates and other drugs. Parents
dip a paper strip into the urine sample or apply drops of urine to the
test, and wait for it to change color, much like a home pregnancy test.

Among the nation's top drug-abuse experts, the jury is still out on at-home
tests. More important than testing, they say, is communication within the
family.

Resentful teens often balk at cooperating or cunningly find ways to thwart
the accuracy of the test. There are a variety of drinks and urine additives
children can buy that claim to break down or mask evidence of drug use.

Certain legal substances, such as codeine and ephedrine, can cause a
false-positive result.

Children can also refrain from using drugs if they know a test is coming,
although marijuana use can be detected for up to three or even four weeks,
manufacturers say. Cocaine is detectable only up to three days after use.