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How long does Plavix stay in the body once I stop taking it. How much Plavix is too much?

Medically reviewed by Melisa Puckey, BPharm. Last updated on Jan 19, 2024.

Official answer

by Drugs.com

Plavix is estimated to be cleared from your body in about 33 hours.

  • A single, oral dose of Plavix (clopidogrel) 75 mg has a half-life of approximately 6 hours.
  • It takes 5.5 x half-life of a medicine for a drug to leave the body, therefore most of the Plavix should be eliminated from your system in 5.5 x 6 = 33 hours.

Elimination times are an estimate and can vary due to patient-specific variables and drug-specific variables including:

  • How much and how often you have taken the drug.
  • Your metabolic rate – a slower metabolism will increase the time a drug remains in your system.
  • Your age and health issues – older age and poor health may increase the time the drug says in your system.
  • Body mass.
  • Drug formulation, way of administration, pharmacokinetics, volume of distribution etc.

How much Plavix is too much?

  • The recommended daily dose of Plavix is 75 milligrams once a day.
  • For the first dose you may receive a one-off dose of 300mg, this is called a loading dose. Once you have had the loading dose, the recommended dose that is taken is 75mg Plavix per day.
  • For some medical conditions the one-off loading dose may be increased up to 600mg.
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