There is no conclusive information on the amount of trazodone it takes to fatally overdose. One fatality did occur after a woman ingested 25.4 micrograms/mL.
A normal dose of trazodone is 50 to 100 mg, but the dose can be as high as 600 mg per day for hospitalized patients.
It would take upwards of 600 mg in a 24-hour period to overdose. However, overdose can also happen when trazodone is taken in combination with other substances.
Learn more about the lethal dose of commonly abused drugs.
How Trazodone Drug Abuse Can Lead To Overdose
Trazodone is a medication used to treat depression or sleep disorders. The antidepressant is comparable to the drug class selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which ease the symptoms of depression.
Trazodone works by inhibiting serotonin transporters and receptors. It blocks the ability of serotonin to be reabsorbed once it’s entered the central nervous system.
This means a higher level of serotonin is left in the system, improving mood, appetite, energy levels, and relieving symptoms of anxiety and insomnia.
If people regularly abuse trazodone due to drug addiction, they may have high levels of the drug in their system all the time or all at once. In combination with other drugs, this can result in an overdose.
How Common Is Trazodone Overdose?
Trazodone overdose is relatively uncommon. It would take a large amount of trazodone to prove fatal, and there have been few deaths from trazodone overdose.
Most cases of trazodone overdose involve instances of self-harm or suicide, rather than an accidental overdose.
Overall, studies have found that when taken alone trazodone is low in toxicity and overdose is unlikely.
Signs Of Trazodone Overdose
A trazodone overdose may reveal itself through a range of mild to life-threatening symptoms.
A few of these include:
- chest pain
- difficulty breathing
- low blood pressure
- slowed heartbeat
- dizziness
- sleepiness
- headache
- tremor
Call 911 or poison control immediately if you or someone you know is showing any signs of trazodone overdose.
Do not make the person throw up unless directed to do so by a medical professional or poison control.
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- National Center for Biotechnology Information — Trazodone
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470560/#:~:text=Trazodone%20is%20an%20antidepressant%20that,alpha%2D1%2Dadrenergic%20receptors. - National Center for Biotechnology Information: PubMed — Fatal overdose with trazodone: case report and literature review
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11603256/ - ResearchGate — Fatal overdose with trazodone: Case report and literature review
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11747732_Fatal_overdose_with_trazodone_Case_report_and_literature_review
