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How Long Does Percocet Remain In The Body?

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Posted on Thu, 28 Jan 2016
Question: i am scheduled for returning to work and will have to submit to a drug test this is after undergoing a right knee rejuvenation due to an infection and had been prescribe Percocet for pain how long will this remain in my system the test is a urine test
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Answered by Dr. Dr. Matt Wachsman (28 minutes later)
Brief Answer:
First, document legitimate use

Detailed Answer:
It is uncommon/rare/almost unheard of for an employer to subject an employee to adverse consequences for a documented legitimate medical use of a controlled substance. So, under many circumstances it is far worse for the urine test to be NEGATIVE for drug that is supposed to be there.
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That being said, about 5 days after last use. BUT it depends on the testing. The army has a very high amount of drug in the urine (10 fold higher than most places) that they consider a positive. This would shave a day off of that 5 day figure. If someone were on a lot of percocet (10's 5 to 8 times a day), this might increase that time by 1 or 2 days. If someone is being tested by the most common screen dipstick method, it is not reliable to detect the narcotic in percocet and it might not show up even if you took a percocet immediately before the test !
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But have the documentation.
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
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Dr. Dr. Matt Wachsman

Addiction Medicine Specialist

Practicing since :1985

Answered : 4214 Questions

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How Long Does Percocet Remain In The Body?

Brief Answer: First, document legitimate use Detailed Answer: It is uncommon/rare/almost unheard of for an employer to subject an employee to adverse consequences for a documented legitimate medical use of a controlled substance. So, under many circumstances it is far worse for the urine test to be NEGATIVE for drug that is supposed to be there. . That being said, about 5 days after last use. BUT it depends on the testing. The army has a very high amount of drug in the urine (10 fold higher than most places) that they consider a positive. This would shave a day off of that 5 day figure. If someone were on a lot of percocet (10's 5 to 8 times a day), this might increase that time by 1 or 2 days. If someone is being tested by the most common screen dipstick method, it is not reliable to detect the narcotic in percocet and it might not show up even if you took a percocet immediately before the test ! . But have the documentation.