Epipen: adverse event reports filed with FDA

3,696

reports as suspect product

0% of all reports · about 164 a year

201

reports, 12 months to June 2026

151 in the 12 months before

50.1%

marked serious by the reporter

75.4% across the class

4.5%

record death among outcomes, as reported

166 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 Epipen reports recording the termmedian drug in catecholamine

1. Device failurethe device failed23.7%877
2. Product quality issuea problem with the product itself19.9%734
3. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected14.8%546
4. Accidental exposure to product11.6%427
5. Accidental exposure8.2%303
6. Injection site painpain where the injection was given6.6%244
7. Needle issuea problem with the needle5.4%199
8. Expired product administeredthe product was used past its expiry date5%186
9. Liquid product physical issue5%185
10. Expired drug administered3.4%127
11. Device use issue3.2%120
12. Injury associated with device3.2%117
13. Drug dose omissiona dose was missed2.6%97
14. Injection site haemorrhagebleeding where the injection was given2.4%90
15. Dyspnoeashortness of breath2.4%87
16. Injection site pallor2.2%83
17. Heart rate increaseda fast heart rate reading2.1%78
18. Tremorshaking2.1%78
19. Drug dose omission by device2%74
20. Injection site bruisingbruising where the injection was given2%74
21. Anaphylactic reactiona severe, sudden allergic reaction1.9%70
22. No adverse eventno adverse event was reported1.9%69
23. Wrong technique in product usage processthe product was used in the wrong way1.7%62
24. Hypersensitivityan allergic-type reaction1.6%60
25. Injection site discolouration1.5%57
26. Injection site injury1.5%57
27. Accidental exposure to product by child1.5%56
28. Product colour issuethe product was an odd colour1.5%55
29. Hypoaesthesianumbness1.5%54
30. Pain in extremitypain in an arm or leg1.4%52

Top 30 of 346 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 7 drugs in the catecholamine 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 22,692 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. 60.7% 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 3,696 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Other products listed in reports where Epipen 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 catecholamine 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 Epipen as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (18,191) 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.