Reported Reactions

Drugs › Anticholinergic

Generic name

Atropine sulfate: adverse event reports filed with FDA

1,168 reports list it as a suspect or interacting product, 2004–2026. Class: Anticholinergic. Also reported as Atropine Sulfate Ophthalmic Solution, Atropine Sulfate Injection Usp.

1,168
reports as suspect product
0% of all reports · about 52 a year
47
reports, 12 months to June 2026
112 in the 12 months before
84.7%
marked serious by the reporter
39.6% across the class
9.7%
record death among outcomes, as reported
113 reports · not verified by FDA

1,168 adverse event reports received by FDA list atropine sulfate, a generic name as a suspect or interacting product, from March 2004 to June 2026. A further 1,338 reports list it only as a concomitant medication, and those are not counted in the figures on this page.

In the 12 months to June 2026, 47 reports listed it, down 58% from 112 in the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Over its reporting history that is about 52 reports a year and 0% of the 20,646,523 reports in the database, and 0.7% of the reports for the anticholinergic class. How many people take it is not in the data, so a count is not a rate of occurrence.

The MedDRA terms listed most often are drug ineffective (22.2%), macular degeneration (15.8%) and off label use (10.8%). A report can list several reactions, so shares add to more than 100%; 409 different terms appear across these reports. Drug ineffective is recorded in 22.2% of these reports, a larger share than in the median anticholinergic drug (9.2%).

84.7% of the reports are marked serious by the reporter (39.6% across the class); 9.7% record death among the outcomes and 36% record hospitalisation, as reported. 45.5% of the reports came from other health professionals, and the largest patient age group is 45 to 64 (18.2%). FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event."

Reports by month, five years

01121Jul 2021: 5Aug 2021: 5Sep 2021: 3Oct 2021: 6Nov 2021: 8Dec 2021: 142022Jan 2022: 3Feb 2022: 10Mar 2022: 9Apr 2022: 20May 2022: 8Jun 2022: 11Jul 2022: 10Aug 2022: 13Sep 2022: 9Oct 2022: 13Nov 2022: 12Dec 2022: 112023Jan 2023: 12Feb 2023: 12Mar 2023: 11Apr 2023: 3May 2023: 12Jun 2023: 16Jul 2023: 6Aug 2023: 10Sep 2023: 11Oct 2023: 13Nov 2023: 10Dec 2023: 82024Jan 2024: 12Feb 2024: 5Mar 2024: 11Apr 2024: 15May 2024: 7Jun 2024: 15Jul 2024: 5Aug 2024: 4Sep 2024: 7Oct 2024: 21Nov 2024: 7Dec 2024: 82025Jan 2025: 4Feb 2025: 15Mar 2025: 17Apr 2025: 10May 2025: 11Jun 2025: 3Jul 2025: 4Aug 2025: 1Sep 2025: 6Oct 2025: 2Nov 2025: 11Dec 2025: 32026Jan 2026: 6Feb 2026: 2Mar 2026: 6Apr 2026: 0May 2026: 0Jun 2026: 6

Reports by the month FDA received them. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases.

By year received

0651292004: 1920042005: 122006: 172007: 1920072008: 242009: 172010: 3620102011: 312012: 192013: 2120132014: 312015: 282016: 4920162017: 402018: 582019: 10820192020: 862021: 752022: 12920222023: 1242024: 1172025: 8720252026: 20

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Atropine sulfate reports recording the termmedian drug in anticholinergic

  1. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected22.2%259
  2. Macular degenerationa disease of the central retina15.8%185
  3. Off label useused for a purpose or in a way not on the label10.8%126
  4. Nauseafeeling sick8.5%99
  5. Pyrexiafever8.1%95
  6. Malaisegeneral feeling of being unwell7.5%88
  7. Painpain, site not specified7.4%87
  8. Erythemaskin redness6.9%81
  9. Weight decreasedweight loss6.8%80
  10. Chronic sinusitis6.8%79
  11. Infusion related reactiona reaction during or soon after an infusion6.8%79
  12. Dyspepsiaindigestion6.6%77
  13. Constipationconstipation6.5%76
  14. Procedural painpain from a procedure6.5%76
  15. Drug hypersensitivityan allergic-type reaction to a medicine6.3%73
  16. Headachehead pain6.3%73
  17. Abdominal painstomach or belly pain6%70
  18. Female genital tract fistula5.7%67
  19. Haematocheziablood in the stool5.7%66
  20. Anaemialow red blood cells5.6%65
  21. Radiculopathy5.6%65
  22. Toxicity to various agentspoisoning or toxic effect of one or more substances5.3%62
  23. Colitisinflamed bowel5.1%60
  24. Oral candidiasisoral thrush5.1%59

Top 30 of 409 MedDRA preferred terms recorded across these reports, with a plain-language gloss where one is available. One report can record several terms. The hollow bar is the median share across the 24 drugs in the anticholinergic class; it describes the reports, not the patients. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Outcomes recorded

Death9.7%113
Life-threatening9.7%113
Hospitalisation (initial or prolonged)36%421
Disability1.1%13
Congenital anomaly0.1%1
Other serious60.8%710
Not serious15.3%179

Outcome flags as the reporter set them; a report can carry several, and "other serious" is FDA's own category for serious reports outside the named outcomes. Grey bar: all 159,807 reports in the class. FDA has not verified any outcome and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence of these events."

Patients and reporters

Patient age

Under 23.6%42
2 to 115.7%67
12 to 172.1%24
18 to 4412.8%149
45 to 6418.2%212
65 to 7416.3%190
75 and over7.4%86
Age not given34.1%398

Patient sex

Female47.3%553
Male37.2%434
Not given15.5%181

Who reported

Physician25.5%298
Pharmacist8.1%95
Other health professional45.5%531
Lawyer0.2%2
Consumer or non-health professional15.3%179
Not given5.4%63

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 30.7% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

Indication as recorded (MedDRA)ReportsShare
Bradycardia494.2%
Salivary hypersecretion292.5%
General anaesthesia211.8%
Anaesthesia201.7%
Ophthalmological examination161.4%
Premedication151.3%

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 1,168 reports.

In context

MeasureAtropine sulfateAnticholinergicAll reports
Reports as suspect product1,168159,80720,646,523
Share of that pool—0.7%0%
Reports, latest 12 months47—1,332,454
Marked serious84.7%39.6%57.4%
Death recorded among outcomes, per 1,000 reports976391
Hospitalisation recorded, per 1,000 reports360202213
Consumer-filed share15.3%70.6%45.8%
Top term, share of reportsDrug ineffective 22.2%median 9.2%6.3%

Shares are of reports, not of patients treated. The number of people taking a product is not in the data, so none of these figures is a rate, and differences between columns reflect who takes a product, who reports and how long it has been sold. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Other drugs in the anticholinergic class

DrugName typeReportsLatest 12 monthsMarked serious
Tiotropium bromidegeneric76,91761632.3%
Trelegy Elliptabrand26,7952,47235.1%
Anoro Elliptabrand12,55434626.3%
Ipratropium bromidegeneric8,31040080.2%
Spiriva Respimatbrand5,58124649.3%
Incruse Elliptabrand4,57512936.1%
Tudorza Pressairbrand3,858832.1%
Stiolto Respimatbrand2,89917225.2%
Atropinegeneric2,38616095.7%
Glycopyrrolategeneric2,22525892.3%
Transderm Scopbrand1,4981543%
Benztropinegeneric1,49216794.2%
Bevespi Aerospherebrand1,4676235.6%
Scopolaminegeneric1,26012568.6%
Aclidinium bromidegeneric1,0136398.6%

Ordered by report count for navigation only. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic." A brand and its generic are separate rows because reporters name them separately.

Questions about Atropine sulfate reports

How many adverse event reports has FDA received for Atropine sulfate?

1,168 reports list Atropine sulfate as a suspect or interacting product in the openFDA FAERS release of 28 Sep 2026, covering reports received through June 2026. 47 of them arrived in the latest 12 months. Another 1,338 list it only as a concomitant medication.

What reactions are recorded in Atropine sulfate reports?

drug ineffective (22.2%), macular degeneration (15.8%), off label use (10.8%), nausea (8.5%) and pyrexia (8.1%). These are MedDRA preferred terms coded from what the reporter described; a report can list several, and a term's presence is not a finding that Atropine sulfate was responsible.

How serious are the reports?

84.7% are marked serious by the reporter. Among the outcomes recorded, 9.7% of reports include death and 36% include hospitalisation. FDA has not verified these outcomes and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence" of the events.

Who files these reports?

other health professional (45.5%), physician (25.5%) and consumer or non-health professional (15.3%). Most reports reach FDA through the manufacturer, which must forward reports it receives.

Are reports for Atropine sulfate rising?

47 reports in the 12 months to June 2026, down 58% from 112 in the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Counts also move with how many people take a product, its time on the market and publicity.

Do these reports show that Atropine sulfate was responsible for these reactions?

No. FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event." The reaction may relate to the condition being treated, to other medicines, or to something else.

Is this a list of the side effects of Atropine sulfate?

No. It is a count of what was reported to FDA. The adverse reactions observed in clinical studies are printed on the FDA-approved label, which a pharmacist or clinician can go through with you.

How do I report an adverse event?

Consumers and health professionals can report to FDA through MedWatch (Form FDA 3500 online, or 1-800-FDA-1088), or to the manufacturer, which must pass reports on. See the guide on how to report.

Where this comes from. Counts are built from the openFDA Drug Adverse Event (FAERS) bulk export released 28 Sep 2026, which holds reports FDA received through 30 Jun 2026. Drug names are as reported, resolved to the brand or generic name on the FDA label where openFDA's harmonisation matched them; classes are the pharmacologic class (EPC) from the label and the National Drug Code Directory of 17 Sep 2026. A report counts here when it lists Atropine sulfate as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (1,338) are excluded. No report narrative, lot number, patient detail or reporter identity is published. See the methodology and sources; FDA's record is authoritative, and corrections are handled within five working days.

Drug data (FAERS) through 30 Jun 2026; device data (MAUDE) through 31 Aug 2026. Not medical advice.