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Expiration date on medication

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Posted 9/16/2016 8:08 PM (GMT 0)
I have some Alprazolam left from an old prescription. The expiration date on the bottle is February 2016. Can I still take that? A friend believes that the expiration date on pill bottles is false and medication is still good for many months after that date. Is there any truth to that?
Posted 9/16/2016 8:37 PM (GMT 0)
PS,

Yes, it is absolutely safe. The only thing that really happens can be a loss of efficacy after a great amount of time...but your Rx would not have degraded just from last Feb.

It will be fine.:)

S.C.
Posted 9/16/2016 8:38 PM (GMT 0)
Medications generally lose their effectiveness over time, so it's likely the meds wouldn't be as potent as they were before they expired. It's possible the meds will still have some effectiveness, but there's no real way to know how effective they would be.

It would probably be best to call and get a new Rx if possible.

Best of luck!
Posted 9/16/2016 9:17 PM (GMT 0)
So long as they've been in a climate controlled environment they should be fine for well beyond the expiration. I told my MD recently that I had taken some expired Klonopin that he had prescribed for me months ago and he was more upset at the fact that I was taking meds that theoretically weren't on a current valid script than they were expired. My advice is get a valid script so your right with your MD and the law.
Posted 9/17/2016 7:43 AM (GMT 0)
Should be fine.
Posted 9/18/2016 12:44 AM (GMT 0)
i have a bottle of this stuff thats 10 years out of date and this summer i had a bad attack and took some and it still worked
Posted 9/18/2016 5:06 AM (GMT 0)
Wow!! 10 years! shocked I don't have anything that's lasted 10 years and is still good to use.

Thanks, guys, now I know I don't have to dispose of those pills. And I did get a new script from my PCP.
Posted 9/18/2016 5:14 AM (GMT 0)
WesHightower, I certainly have to be right with my doctor and with the law. My current job which I've only had for a few months, had me take a random employment drug screening test. And one of the "illegal" drugs that's screened for is Alprazolam.
Posted 9/18/2016 5:23 AM (GMT 0)
Glad you're covered now with the new Rx, PSchawl!
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