What the label lists and what reports show
Bethanechol side effects
Bethanechol's FDA label lists its adverse reactions in its own words. FAERS holds 546 reports naming it through July 30, 2026; the reaction reported most often, leaving out the conditions it is used for, product-use terms and outcomes, is fall (36 reports).
- Generic listed
Check it at the source: the bethanechol FDA label on DailyMed (effective January 29, 2026, Amneal Pharmaceuticals of New York LLC); the FDA FAERS public dashboard.
What does the label list?
From the label: adverse reactionsAdverse reactions are rare following oral administration of bethanechol chloride, but are more common following subcutaneous injection. Adverse reactions are more likely to occur when dosage is increased. The following adverse reactions have been observed: Body as a Whole: malaise Digestive: abdominal cramps or discomfort, colicky pain, nausea and belching, diarrhea, borborygmi, salivation Renal: urinary urgency Nervous System: headache Cardiovascular: a fall in blood pressure with reflex tachycardia, vasomotor response Skin: flushing producing a feeling of warmth, sensation of heat about the face, sweating Respiratory: bronchial constriction, asthmatic attacks Special Senses: lacrimation, miosis Causal Relationship Unknown: The following adverse reactions have been reported, and a causal relationship to therapy with bethanechol chloride has not been established: Body as a Whole …
Source: FDA drug label, Amneal Pharmaceuticals of New York LLC, effective January 29, 2026 (SPL set 16523451-cd3d-4c10-be06-d59a6f12ac68), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What do FAERS reports show?
546 reports list bethanechol among the medicines taken, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 84 are coded as a death and 226 as a hospital stay. Counts follow how widely a medicine is used and watched, and they are not a measure of how risky it is. Of the 22 reactions below, 4 are named by the same term (in US spelling) in the label's adverse reactions, warnings or patient leaflet; a reaction the label does not name may still be there under another word, and a report does not show that the medicine caused it.
Reports received each year
The 25 most reported reactions
Source: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) via openFDA, reports through July 30, 2026; reactions as MedDRA preferred terms
What next?
- Bethanechol: the full record
- label, generics, price, shortages, recalls
- Report a side effect to the FDA
- MedWatch
- Side effects hub
- the most reported medicines and reactions