Urine screening in drug abuse or misuse
Approximate duration of detectability of selected drugs in the urine
Substance | Duration of Detectability |
amfetamines (amphetamines) | 48 hours |
methamphetamine | 48 hours |
barbiturates (1) short-acting intermediate-acting long-acting |
24 hours 48-72 hours 7 days or more |
benzodiazepines (2) - ultra-short-acting (half-life 2 hours) e.g. midazolam - short-acting (half-life 2-6 hours) e.g. triazolam - intermediate acting (half-life 6-24 hours) e.g. temazepam, chlordiazepoxide - long-acting (half-life 24 hours) e.g. diazepam/nitrazepam |
12 hours 24 hours 2-5 days 7 days or more |
Cocaine Metabolites | 2-3 days |
Methadone (maintenance dosing) | 7-9 days (approximate) |
Codeine/Propoxyphene/Morphine (heroin is detected in the urine as the metabolite morphine) | 48 hours |
norpropoxyphene (1) | 6-48 hours |
cannabinoids (marijuana) - single use - moderate use ( 3 times per week) - heavy use (daily) - chronic heavy use |
3-4 days 5-6 days 20 days up to 45 days |
methaqualone (1) | 7 days or more |
phencyclidine (PCP) (1) | 8 days (approximate) |
Buprenorphine and metabolites | 8 days |
Reference:
- Department of Health and Social Care. Drug misuse and dependence: UK guidelines on clinical management. Published July 2017.
Related pages
Create an account to add page annotations
Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.