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Author: Admin | 2025-04-28
If are taking a prescription antidepressant medication like Prozac (fluoxetine), you might worry that it could show up on a drug test. This is especially a concern if you must take a pre-employment drug screen for a new job. Because antidepressants are not considered "drugs of abuse," they are not included in common urine drug screens. However, there may be cross-reactions that can produce false positive results for the substances these tests are designed to detect.Never stop taking your antidepressant without talking to your doctor first. If you are concerned about false positives on drug screenings, inform the technician about any medications you are taking, including antidepressants, other prescription medications, or over-the-counter medications. Keep reading to learn the actions you can take to ensure your drug test results are interpreted accurately, and your rights are protected. Common Drug Screens Antidepressants do not show up as antidepressants on standard drug tests. The lab would have to do specific additional tests to look for antidepressants. If you are in treatment for depression, the good news is that antidepressants are not the drugs that an employer is looking for in an employment drug screen. The types of substances tested for on a typical employment drug screens include: Amphetamines, including methamphetamineBarbituratesBenzodiazepines (tranquilizers)Cannabinoids, including marijuanaCocaineDarvon (propoxyphene)Opiates, including heroin, oxycodone, and hydrocodonePhencyclidine (PCP) Sometimes, however, an antidepressant will trigger a false positive on a drug test, showing up on the test as an amphetamine or lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Impact of Antidepressants on Drug Tests False positive test results can sometimes occur if a prescription drug or its metabolite has a similar chemical structure to the target drug being tested for.Some antidepressants can inadvertently trigger a false positive for a controlled substance. To avoid this, advise the tester about any medications you may be taking so that confirmatory tests can be performed to weed out any false positives. Certain antidepressant drugs are more prone to false-positive readings. For example:Wellbutrin (bupropion), Prozac (fluoxetine), and Desyrel (trazodone) can all potentially show up as amphetamines on a drug screen.Zoloft (sertraline) may show up as a benzodiazepine. Less commonly, antidepressants
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