How Long Does Trazodone Stay In Your System?
Medically Reviewed By: Manish Mishra, MBBS
Trazodone, known by the brand name as Desyrel, is a type of antidepressant. It’s classified as a serotonin antagonist and reuptake inhibitor (SARI). The medication is approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) to treat major depressive and anxiety disorders. It’s also used to help with sleep disorders.
If you take Trazodone, you may wonder how long it stays in your system. It could be for various reasons. For example, you may not want an antidepressant showing up on a pre-employment drug test.
Also, as with many antidepressants, Trazodone can have some negative side effects. Stopping or altering your dosage can lead to uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms.
So how long does Trazodone stay in your system? Well, it depends.
Factors that Affect How Long Trazodone Stays in Your Body
Trazodone has a half-life between five and 9 hours. This means it will take your body (on average) around seven hours to eliminate half of the drug.
In a healthy adult, a single dosage of Trazodone can remain in the body for one to three days.
But, this is not the same for everyone.
There are many factors that influence how long this drug can stay in your system, including:
- Dosage: The higher the dose, the longer Trazodone metabolites remain in your system. Smaller doses are generally, excreted faster than larger doses.
- Age: Some studies show the half-life of Trazodone is longer in older adults.
- Weight: Body mass and fat can affect how fast the drug metabolizes and how it’s stored in fat cells.
- Frequency of use: Taking the drug over an extended period of time means it will take longer to leave your system.
- Last time taken: Certain tests can detect it only after a few hours or days of taking it. Others can detect it after three months.
- Genetics and metabolism: These influence liver function and the enzymes that metabolize Trazodone.
Another variable to consider is the type of drug test. Read on to learn how long the medication can stay in your urine, hair, blood, and saliva.
Urine tests are the most popular type of drug screening. Antidepressants generally are not considered to be addictive substances. Most drug screenings don’t screen for them.
But, certain antidepressants can create cross-reactions that produce false-positive results in drug tests. Trazodone is one of those medications.
Your body can eliminate the parent drug Trazodone in about two days. But, after you ingest Trazodone, it breaks down into metabolites. These linger for in your body for much longer.
Trazodone metabolites can produce false-positive results for amphetamines in a urine test for up to 26 days.
How Long Does Trazodone Stay in Your Hair?
The Trazodone metabolites get stored in fast-growing cells, such as hair.
Hair tests can detect drugs for an extended period of time, including antidepressants. They can detect Trazodone metabolites in hair for at least 90 days.
How Long Does Trazodone Stay in Your Blood?
Blood tests can trace compounds of Trazodone in blood tests for up to three days from the last time taken.
How Long Does Trazodone Stay in Your Saliva?
Saliva tests can detect drugs within a couple of hours of administration. This means that, through a saliva test, it’s possible to detect Trazodone quicker than it would be through urine tests.
Trazodone metabolites are detectable in saliva tests for a longer duration than blood tests. Saliva tests can detect these metabolites for up to four days after the last time taken.
How Long Does Trazodone Stay in Lab Tests?
Again, Trazodone and other antidepressants are rare for regular drug screenings. But, it is possible for labs to test for Trazodone.
How long the drug is detectable for depends on the type of test administered.
To summarize:
- Urine: Two days for the parent drug Trazodone and up to 26 days for its metabolites.
- Hair: Up to three months.
- Blood: Three days.
- Saliva: Between a few hours and four days.
Risks Associated With Trazodone
There is little evidence to suggest that trazodone is an addictive medication.
But there are some serious risks and side effects associated with Trazodone, including:
- Overdose: This is any dosage above 600 mg within 24 hours.
- Withdrawal: A person taking Trazodone over an extended period of time can develop a tolerance. When dosage lowers, there is also the potential of experiencing withdrawal symptoms. This includes anxiety, agitation, and sleep disturbance.
- Serotonin Syndrome. This is a rare but serious effect that can happen when the body experiences too much serotonin.
As with any antidepressant, Trazodone can cause some dangerous and uncomfortable side effects. While it’s not considered an addictive substance by the FDA, there is a potential for abuse.
If you or a loved one is struggling with withdrawal symptoms, you’re not alone. Reach out to Bedrock Recovery Center today and start living a happier, healthier life!
People Also Read:
- https://mentalhealthdaily.com/2015/11/08/how-long-does-trazodone-stay-in-your-system-after-stopping/
- https://www.drugs.com/medical-answers/long-100-msg-trazodone-stay-system-3365771/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21740694
- https://www.drugbank.ca/drugs/DB00656
- https://www.verywellmind.com/can-antidepressants-show-up-on-a-drug-test-3972798
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9616194
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8403734
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3321134/
Medically Reviewed By: Manish Mishra, MBBS
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