Lortab Withdrawal

If you abruptly stop taking Lortab (hydrocodone/APAP), withdrawal symptoms may occur. Common symptoms of a withdrawal include nausea, vomiting, sweating, and agitation. A Lortab withdrawal is not dangerous but can be quite uncomfortable, so your healthcare provider may slowly decrease your dose at a rate that helps minimize withdrawal symptoms.

 

Lortab Withdrawal: An Overview

Lortab® (hydrocodone/APAP) is a prescription pain medication. Like all narcotics, Lortab may cause withdrawal symptoms if it is stopped too quickly. While Lortab withdrawal symptoms can be quite uncomfortable and unpleasant, you can be assured that unlike withdrawal from some medications, Lortab withdrawal is not life threatening.
 

Symptoms of Lortab Withdrawal

Symptoms of Lortab withdrawal can vary in intensity and may include:
 
  • Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea
  • Sweating and a runny nose
  • Goose bumps
  • Agitation.
     
None of these Lortab withdrawal symptoms are life threatening.
 

Why Does Lortab Withdrawal Occur?

Over time, the body becomes accustomed to the effects of Lortab. If the drug is stopped too quickly -- or even if the dose is reduced too quickly -- withdrawal symptoms may occur. Lortab withdrawal can occur with chronic, legitimate use of the drug, as well as with Lortab abuse. Withdrawal is a normal, predictable, physical response to stopping a narcotic; it is not necessarily a sign of abuse.
 
Lortab withdrawal can also occur due to the administration of naloxone (Narcan®), even if the Lortab dose has not been reduced. Naloxone is a drug that prevents opiates such as Lortab from binding to receptors in the body.
 
(Lortab Withdrawal Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;