naloxone
Adjunctive therapy • Brands: Narcan
Last reviewed: 2025-12-31
General information
- Class: Adjunctive therapy
- Common US brands: Narcan
- Therapeutic drug monitoring not routinely recommended.
- Last reviewed: 2025-12-31
Dosing & forms
- Forms/strengths: —
- Frequency: —
- Food: —
- Typical range: —
Mechanism (brief)
Opioid receptor antagonist used for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose (respiratory and/or CNS depression). Because naloxone’s duration is often shorter than the opioid involved, repeat dosing and emergency medical evaluation are commonly required (label/guideline).
Metabolism & Half‑life
- Metabolism: Hepatic glucuronidation to naloxone-3-glucuronide (label)
- Half‑life: Single-dose range 0.5–2.1 h
Therapeutic Drug Monitoring (TDM)
Recommended: No
Monitoring highlights
- —
Sources
- NARCAN (naloxone hydrochloride) nasal spray prescribing information — DailyMed (2025)
- Naloxone hydrochloride injection prescribing information — DailyMed (2024)
- Are take-home naloxone programmes effective? Systematic review utilizing application of the Bradford Hill criteria — Addiction (2016)
- TIP 63: Medications for Opioid Use Disorder — SAMHSA (2021)