Reported Reactions

Drugs › Progestin

Brand name · Levonorgestrel

Take Action: adverse event reports filed with FDA

2,550 reports list it as a suspect or interacting product, 2014–2026. Class: Progestin.

2,550
reports as suspect product
0% of all reports · about 207 a year
20
reports, 12 months to June 2026
29 in the 12 months before
8.1%
marked serious by the reporter
41.9% across the class
0%
record death among outcomes, as reported
0 reports · not verified by FDA

Between March 2014 and June 2026, 2,550 adverse event reports received by FDA list the brand name Take Action (levonorgestrel) as a suspect or interacting product. Reports that mention it only as a concomitant medication (5) are left out of every figure here.

In the 12 months to June 2026, 20 reports listed it, down 31% from 29 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 207 reports a year and 0% of the 20,646,523 reports in the database, and 0.9% of the reports for the progestin 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 vaginal haemorrhage (28.7%), dysmenorrhoea (17.2%) and menstruation irregular (15.4%). A report can list several reactions, so shares add to more than 100%; 134 different terms appear across these reports. Vaginal haemorrhage is recorded in 28.7% of these reports, a larger share than in the median progestin drug (4.9%).

8.1% of the reports are marked serious by the reporter (41.9% across the class); 0% record death among the outcomes and 0.2% record hospitalisation, as reported. 85.1% of the reports came from consumers, and the largest patient age group is 18 to 44 (54.5%). 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

02039Jul 2021: 13Aug 2021: 0Sep 2021: 2Oct 2021: 0Nov 2021: 1Dec 2021: 312022Jan 2022: 11Feb 2022: 0Mar 2022: 3Apr 2022: 5May 2022: 0Jun 2022: 0Jul 2022: 15Aug 2022: 0Sep 2022: 0Oct 2022: 9Nov 2022: 0Dec 2022: 02023Jan 2023: 11Feb 2023: 1Mar 2023: 0Apr 2023: 0May 2023: 0Jun 2023: 0Jul 2023: 26Aug 2023: 0Sep 2023: 0Oct 2023: 1Nov 2023: 1Dec 2023: 02024Jan 2024: 0Feb 2024: 0Mar 2024: 0Apr 2024: 39May 2024: 2Jun 2024: 0Jul 2024: 9Aug 2024: 0Sep 2024: 0Oct 2024: 0Nov 2024: 0Dec 2024: 12025Jan 2025: 0Feb 2025: 0Mar 2025: 0Apr 2025: 0May 2025: 7Jun 2025: 12Jul 2025: 6Aug 2025: 0Sep 2025: 1Oct 2025: 0Nov 2025: 0Dec 2025: 22026Jan 2026: 1Feb 2026: 2Mar 2026: 1Apr 2026: 3May 2026: 2Jun 2026: 2

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

02515022014: 41020142015: 4382016: 50220162017: 2942018: 20020182019: 2312020: 20420202021: 982022: 4320222023: 402024: 5120242025: 282026: 112026

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Take Action reports recording the termmedian drug in progestin

  1. Vaginal haemorrhagevaginal bleeding28.7%733
  2. Menstruation irregularirregular periods15.4%393
  3. Nauseafeeling sick15.3%391
  4. Vomitingbeing sick11.3%289
  5. Headachehead pain7.9%201
  6. Fatiguetiredness6.2%159
  7. Pregnancy after post coital contraception6.1%156
  8. Dizzinesslight-headedness or unsteadiness5.6%142
  9. Intentional product misusedeliberate use not as intended5.5%140
  10. Abdominal painstomach or belly pain4.2%107
  11. Abdominal pain upperupper stomach pain3.5%88
  12. Back painback pain3%77
  13. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected2.9%75
  14. Abdominal distensiona bloated abdomen2.5%64
  15. Maternal exposure during pregnancythe mother took the medicine during pregnancy2.4%60
  16. Menorrhagiaheavy periods2.3%59
  17. Muscle spasmsmuscle cramps2.2%55
  18. Diarrhoealoose or frequent stools2.1%53
  19. Breast painbreast pain1.9%48
  20. Intentional product use issuedeliberate use not as intended1.7%43
  21. Abdominal discomfortstomach discomfort1.3%34

Top 30 of 134 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 17 drugs in the progestin 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

Death0%0
Life-threatening0.1%2
Hospitalisation (initial or prolonged)0.2%4
Disability0.1%3
Congenital anomaly0%1
Other serious7.9%202
Not serious91.9%2,344

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 293,492 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%3
2 to 110%0
12 to 175.6%143
18 to 4454.5%1,390
45 to 642.2%55
65 to 740%1
75 and over0%0
Age not given37.6%958

Patient sex

Female99.5%2,538
Male0%1
Not given0.4%11

Who reported

Physician0%0
Pharmacist0%0
Other health professional0%1
Lawyer0%0
Consumer or non-health professional85.1%2,169
Not given14.9%380

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 99.8% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

Indication as recorded (MedDRA)ReportsShare
Post coital contraception2,34191.8%
Contraception90.4%

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 2,550 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Drug (any role in the report)ReportsShare of Take Action reports
Ibuprofen170.7%
Plan B One-Step170.7%
Adderall160.6%
Levothyroxine160.6%
Zyrtec160.6%
Iron140.5%
Nuvaring120.5%
Vitamin d110.4%
Albuterol100.4%
Lisinopril100.4%

Other products listed in reports where Take Action 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

MeasureTake ActionProgestinAll reports
Reports as suspect product2,550293,49220,646,523
Share of that pool—0.9%0%
Reports, latest 12 months20—1,332,454
Marked serious8.1%41.9%57.4%
Death recorded among outcomes, per 1,000 reports0491
Hospitalisation recorded, per 1,000 reports252213
Consumer-filed share85.1%46.4%45.8%
Top term, share of reportsVaginal haemorrhage 28.7%median 4.9%0.2%

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 progestin class

DrugName typeReportsLatest 12 monthsMarked serious
Mirenabrand129,4793,43340.6%
Nexplanonbrand43,75183624.8%
Plan B One-Stepbrand35,3243274.9%
Proverabrand20,4002698.6%
Depo-Proverabrand18,66911,38387.1%
Lilettabrand10,5678508.2%
Medroxyprogesterone acetategeneric8,62181889%
Kyleenabrand8,07569440.4%
Skylabrand5,31012541.7%
Medroxyprogesteronegeneric3,03016573.8%
Levonorgestrelgeneric2,71121972.2%
Etonogestrelgeneric2,11225589.7%
Afterabrand818195%
Norethindronegeneric7975252.1%
Norethindrone acetategeneric722835.9%

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 Take Action reports

How many adverse event reports has FDA received for Take Action?

2,550 reports list Take Action as a suspect or interacting product in the openFDA FAERS release of 28 Sep 2026, covering reports received through June 2026. 20 of them arrived in the latest 12 months. Another 5 list it only as a concomitant medication.

What reactions are recorded in Take Action reports?

vaginal haemorrhage (28.7%), dysmenorrhoea (17.2%), menstruation irregular (15.4%), nausea (15.3%) and menstruation delayed (14.2%). 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 Take Action was responsible.

How serious are the reports?

8.1% are marked serious by the reporter. Among the outcomes recorded, 0% of reports include death and 0.2% 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 (85.1%), not given (14.9%) and other health professional (0%). Most reports reach FDA through the manufacturer, which must forward reports it receives.

Are reports for Take Action rising?

20 reports in the 12 months to June 2026, down 31% from 29 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 Take Action 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 Take Action?

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 Take Action as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (5) 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.