OxyContin is a controlled substance in The United States, and for good reason. Oxycontin is an opioid, and due to the risk of abuse and addiction, is labeled as a Schedule II drug according to The Drug Enforcement Agency. Used as a potent painkiller OxyContin is prescribed under several different brand names and generics, oxycodone for one, which is manufactured synthetically in labs.
OxyContin is most often prescribed for severe pain for conditions including significant injury, chronic pain conditions, or after surgical procedures. This powerful drug unfortunately has also become a very abused substance because it acts on the brain’s pleasure center and creates a sense of euphoria. If you have been asking how long does OxyContin stay in your system continue reading below for some information that you may find helpful.
The Timeline
When you are talking about drugs in the body, most often you will hear terms like “half-life”, which refers to the time it will take for the body to flush out 50% of the drug in your system. The half-life for OxyContin is just over four hours on average for this time-released drug. Continue reading for more on how long does OxyContin stay in your system.
Metabolising OxyContin
The human body processes OxyContin mainly through the liver complex network creating metabolites that are eventually excreted in the urine by the way of your kidneys. This means that OxyContin will easily show up on a urine drug test. There are reports of those who try to flush their system with water to get rid of the evidence of OxyContin, however, doing so will also flush the creatine out of your system, so without the proper replacement of vitamins in your urine, your test will flag as suspicious.
Drug Screening
There are several methods of testing for OxyContin in standard drug screenings. Urine is by far the easiest and least costly of the options available and is capable of detecting the drug in your system for up to four days. The spit test, or using saliva will only detect OxyContin for around a day and is much more expensive.
Hair follicle testing can detect OxyContin for around three months but is rarely used due to cost and time factors. The fact is that most jobs, law enforcement, and addiction centers do tests on a regular basis for OxyContin when drug screening is required.
Things To Consider
When you take OxyContin legally for legitimate medical use or use it illicitly, it takes time for the drug to clear your system. Do keep in mind that your body weight, the amount of the drug consumed, and how often you take it will make a difference in elimination. Most commonly when being drug tested you will be facing a urine test as it is the fastest, easiest, and cheapest method of detection by far.
Remember that chronic users even though they don’t feel the effects of the drug, will still test positive for up to four days. For more information on this subject look online for “How long does OxyContin stay in your system”.