Tag: Long acting drugs

According to research, the drug amiodarone, used for heart arrhythmias, has an exceptionally long half-life that can range from 15 to 142 days, making it a prime example of a drug that stays in your system the longest.

In some studies, only 40% to 60% of people with schizophrenia adhere to their daily medication plan [1.2.8]. This raises the question: **What are long-lasting drugs?** They are formulations designed for slow, sustained release to improve treatment consistency and outcomes.

Bedaquiline, a drug used to treat multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, has a terminal half-life of about 5.5 months, making it one of the longest-acting medications known [1.3.1, 1.3.3]. So, which drug has the longest half-life and what does this mean for patients?

While most drugs are cleared from the body within days or weeks, hair follicle tests can detect some substances for up to 90 days or even longer [1.4.3, 1.4.4]. So, can drugs stay in your body for years? The answer is complex, involving drug type, body tissues, and testing methods.