Cetirizine: adverse event reports filed with FDA

12,522

reports as suspect product

0.1% of all reports · about 578 a year

1,548

reports, 12 months to June 2026

2,018 in the 12 months before

91.7%

marked serious by the reporter

57.7% across the class

23.5%

record death among outcomes, as reported

2,944 reports · not verified by FDA

Reports by month, five years

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

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Cetirizine reports recording the termmedian drug in histamine-1 receptor antagonist

1. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected25.3%3,167
2. Painpain, site not specified24.1%3,024
3. Fatiguetiredness23.6%2,961
4. Rashskin rash21.2%2,649
5. Rheumatoid arthritisrheumatoid arthritis, an inflammatory joint disease20.8%2,602
6. Systemic lupus erythematosuslupus, an autoimmune disease20.7%2,597
7. Abdominal discomfortstomach discomfort20.6%2,579
8. Alopeciahair loss20%2,503
9. Infusion related reactiona reaction during or soon after an infusion19.9%2,497
10. Pemphigus19.9%2,493
11. Swellingswelling19.3%2,423
12. Glossodynia19.2%2,400
13. Hepatic enzyme increasedraised liver enzymes19%2,374
14. Pericarditisinflammation of the sac around the heart18.9%2,364
15. Pruritusitching18.7%2,338
16. Hypersensitivityan allergic-type reaction18.6%2,334
17. Joint swellinga swollen joint18.4%2,302
18. Hand deformity18.3%2,286
19. Off label useused for a purpose or in a way not on the label18.1%2,271
20. Synovitis18.1%2,267
21. Arthralgiajoint pain17.8%2,230
22. Pyrexiafever17.6%2,207
23. Duodenal ulcer perforation17.5%2,191
24. Wound17.2%2,156
25. Dyspnoeashortness of breath17%2,131
26. Helicobacter infection16.8%2,108
27. Drug intolerancethe medicine was not tolerated16.8%2,105
28. Arthropathy16.8%2,100
29. Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody positive15.9%1,993
30. Stomatitissore mouth15.7%1,970

Top 30 of 1,507 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 34 drugs in the histamine-1 receptor antagonist 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

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 135,666 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

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 17.3% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 12,522 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Other products listed in reports where Cetirizine is a suspect product, whatever their own role. Co-listing means the two were recorded together; it says nothing about either product's part in the event. Only the 2,500 most-reported names are counted here.

In context

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 histamine-1 receptor antagonist class

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.

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 Cetirizine as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (30,243) 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.