trifluoperazine

General information

• Class: Antipsychotic
• Common US brands: Stelazine
• Therapeutic drug monitoring not routinely recommended.
• Last reviewed: 2025-12-30

Dosing & forms

• Forms/strengths: —
• Frequency: —
• Food: —
• Typical range: —

Mechanism (brief)

High-potency phenothiazine first-generation antipsychotic (D2 antagonism). Has a label indication for short-term treatment of non-psychotic anxiety, but carries antipsychotic-class risks including tardive dyskinesia.

Metabolism & Half‑life

• Metabolism: Hepatic metabolism
• Half‑life: —

Therapeutic Drug Monitoring (TDM)

Recommended: No

Monitoring highlights

• —

Sources

• Trifluoperazine hydrochloride tablets prescribing information — DailyMed (2025)
• First-Generation Versus Second-Generation Antipsychotics in Adults: Comparative Effectiveness — Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (NCBI Bookshelf) (2012)
• The American Psychiatric Association Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients With Schizophrenia — American Psychiatric Association (2020)
• AGNP Consensus Guidelines for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring in Neuropsychopharmacology — Pharmacopsychiatry (2018)