A urine specimen's temperature is a critical value immediately checked for which testing purpose?

The temperature of a urine specimen is particularly critical in the context of substance abuse analysis. This is because ensuring the integrity of the sample is vital in detecting the presence of drugs accurately. A normal temperature range for freshly collected urine is between 90°F and 100°F (32°C to 38°C). A specimen that is outside this temperature range may indicate that it has been tampered with or substituted, which could compromise the reliability of the test results.

In substance abuse testing, it's essential to validate that the specimen is a valid sample from the individual being tested. Checking the temperature as one of the first steps helps to confirm that the sample is fresh and has not been altered after collection, thereby upholding the integrity of the analysis. Other testing purposes, such as pregnancy testing or diabetes monitoring, do not necessitate such immediate verification of specimen temperature for maintaining test validity.