Reported Reactions

Drugs › Muscle relaxant

Brand name · Carisoprodol

Soma: adverse event reports filed with FDA

1,316 reports list it as a suspect or interacting product, 2004–2026. Class: Muscle relaxant.

1,316
reports as suspect product
0% of all reports · about 59 a year
5
reports, 12 months to June 2026
9 in the 12 months before
76.3%
marked serious by the reporter
86.6% across the class
17.1%
record death among outcomes, as reported
225 reports · not verified by FDA

Between January 2004 and May 2026, 1,316 adverse event reports received by FDA list the brand name Soma (carisoprodol) as a suspect or interacting product. Reports that mention it only as a concomitant medication (9,138) are left out of every figure here.

In the 12 months to June 2026, 5 reports listed it, down 44% from 9 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 59 reports a year and 0% of the 20,646,523 reports in the database, and 6.5% of the reports for the muscle relaxant class. How many people take it is not in the data, so a count is not a rate of occurrence.

The reactions recorded most often are drug dependence (26.4%), overdose (19.2%) and drug hypersensitivity (9.7%). A report can list several reactions, so shares add to more than 100%; 450 different terms appear across these reports. Drug dependence is recorded in 26.4% of these reports, a larger share than in the median muscle relaxant drug (1.2%).

76.3% of the reports are marked serious by the reporter (86.6% across the class); 17.1% record death among the outcomes and 20.8% record hospitalisation, as reported. 49.9% of the reports came from consumers, and the largest patient age group is 45 to 64 (23.3%). 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

01427Jul 2021: 2Aug 2021: 4Sep 2021: 11Oct 2021: 1Nov 2021: 8Dec 2021: 272022Jan 2022: 11Feb 2022: 2Mar 2022: 4Apr 2022: 1May 2022: 1Jun 2022: 6Jul 2022: 0Aug 2022: 1Sep 2022: 1Oct 2022: 19Nov 2022: 2Dec 2022: 22023Jan 2023: 2Feb 2023: 0Mar 2023: 1Apr 2023: 1May 2023: 0Jun 2023: 2Jul 2023: 2Aug 2023: 8Sep 2023: 1Oct 2023: 9Nov 2023: 3Dec 2023: 42024Jan 2024: 1Feb 2024: 0Mar 2024: 1Apr 2024: 1May 2024: 0Jun 2024: 1Jul 2024: 1Aug 2024: 1Sep 2024: 2Oct 2024: 0Nov 2024: 0Dec 2024: 12025Jan 2025: 2Feb 2025: 0Mar 2025: 1Apr 2025: 0May 2025: 0Jun 2025: 1Jul 2025: 0Aug 2025: 0Sep 2025: 1Oct 2025: 1Nov 2025: 0Dec 2025: 02026Jan 2026: 2Feb 2026: 0Mar 2026: 0Apr 2026: 0May 2026: 1Jun 2026: 0

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

01062122004: 1920042005: 282006: 202007: 2420072008: 442009: 392010: 6020102011: 602012: 712013: 5020132014: 572015: 932016: 10820162017: 492018: 552019: 5420192020: 2122021: 1722022: 5020222023: 332024: 92025: 620252026: 3

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Soma reports recording the termmedian drug in muscle relaxant

  1. Drug dependencedependence on a medicine26.4%347
  2. Overdosea dose above the recommended amount19.2%253
  3. Drug hypersensitivityan allergic-type reaction to a medicine9.7%127
  4. Painpain, site not specified9.7%127
  5. Drug abusemisuse of a medicine8.6%113
  6. Drug withdrawal syndromesymptoms on stopping a medicine6.8%90
  7. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected6.6%87
  8. Somnolencedrowsiness6%79
  9. Anxietyanxiety5.2%68
  10. Depressionlow mood4.9%65
  11. Emotional distressemotional distress4.3%56
  12. Insomniadifficulty sleeping4%53
  13. Vomitingbeing sick4%52
  14. Loss of consciousnesspassing out3.9%51
  15. Road traffic accidenta road accident3.8%50
  16. Toxicity to various agentspoisoning or toxic effect of one or more substances3.8%50
  17. Nauseafeeling sick3.7%49
  18. Falla fall3.6%48
  19. Headachehead pain3.6%48
  20. Feeling abnormalfeeling odd or not right3.5%46
  21. Tremorshaking3%40
  22. Dyspnoeashortness of breath3%39
  23. Deaththe patient died; cause not stated by this term2.7%35
  24. Suicidal ideationthoughts of suicide2.6%34
  25. Amnesiamemory loss2.3%30
  26. Dizzinesslight-headedness or unsteadiness2.3%30
  27. Muscle spasmsmuscle cramps2.3%30

Top 30 of 450 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 8 drugs in the muscle relaxant 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

Death17.1%225
Life-threatening4.1%54
Hospitalisation (initial or prolonged)20.8%274
Disability6.9%91
Congenital anomaly0.4%5
Other serious59%776
Not serious23.7%312

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 20,135 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 20.1%1
2 to 110.2%3
12 to 170.7%9
18 to 4415.8%208
45 to 6423.3%307
65 to 744.3%56
75 and over2.4%31
Age not given53.3%701

Patient sex

Female58.2%766
Male36.7%483
Not given5.1%67

Who reported

Physician17.9%235
Pharmacist2.1%28
Other health professional11.7%154
Lawyer12.6%166
Consumer or non-health professional49.9%657
Not given5.8%76

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 96.7% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

Indication as recorded (MedDRA)ReportsShare
Pain1118.4%
Back pain624.7%
Muscle spasms453.4%
Muscle relaxant therapy423.2%
Ill-defined disorder141.1%
Myalgia90.7%

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 1,316 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Drug (any role in the report)ReportsShare of Soma reports
OxyContin38829.5%
Oxycodone hydrochloride36327.6%
Xanax27520.9%
Hydrocodone bitartrate and acetaminophen18814.3%
Percocet17613.4%
Dilaudid17513.3%
Morphine sulfate17513.3%
Vicodin13810.5%
Tramadol1279.7%
Valium1209.1%

Other products listed in reports where Soma 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

MeasureSomaMuscle relaxantAll reports
Reports as suspect product1,31620,13520,646,523
Share of that pool—6.5%0%
Reports, latest 12 months5—1,332,454
Marked serious76.3%86.6%57.4%
Death recorded among outcomes, per 1,000 reports17151291
Hospitalisation recorded, per 1,000 reports208265213
Consumer-filed share49.9%18.6%45.8%
Top term, share of reportsDrug dependence 26.4%median 1.2%0.8%

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 muscle relaxant class

DrugName typeReportsLatest 12 monthsMarked serious
Cyclobenzaprinegeneric8,75056090.5%
Carisoprodolgeneric4,0952892.1%
Methocarbamolgeneric2,11124579.6%
Cyclobenzaprine hydrochloridegeneric1,59111586.3%
Metaxalonegeneric9251273.7%
Cyclobenzaprine hclgeneric763088.1%
Robaxinbrand5842957.5%

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 Soma reports

How many adverse event reports has FDA received for Soma?

1,316 reports list Soma as a suspect or interacting product in the openFDA FAERS release of 28 Sep 2026, covering reports received through June 2026. 5 of them arrived in the latest 12 months. Another 9,138 list it only as a concomitant medication.

What reactions are recorded in Soma reports?

drug dependence (26.4%), overdose (19.2%), drug hypersensitivity (9.7%), pain (9.7%) and drug abuse (8.6%). 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 Soma was responsible.

How serious are the reports?

76.3% are marked serious by the reporter. Among the outcomes recorded, 17.1% of reports include death and 20.8% 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?

consumer or non-health professional (49.9%), physician (17.9%) and lawyer (12.6%). Most reports reach FDA through the manufacturer, which must forward reports it receives.

Are reports for Soma rising?

5 reports in the 12 months to June 2026, down 44% from 9 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 Soma 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 Soma?

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 Soma as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (9,138) 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.