[Clinical applications of hair analysis in the Netherlands].

Hair analysis has been known for its role in forensic science. However, it may also have an important role in the clinical approach of various exposures, for example drugs and heavy metals. In the Netherlands, it is used infrequently probably because clinicians are not familiar with this diagnostic possibility. In this article, we present two cases in which hair analysis proved to be crucial in the diagnosis of two different exposures (tobacco smoking and arsenic). We provide an overview of the various clinical applications of hair analysis and important factors affecting the results of hair analysis.