What the label lists and what reports show
Dopamine side effects
Dopamine's FDA label: “The most common adverse reaction is localized vasoconstriction due to extravasation.” FAERS holds 3,763 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 hypotension (391 reports).
- Generic listed
- In shortage
Check it at the source: the dopamine FDA label on DailyMed (effective May 12, 2026, Hospira, Inc.); the FDA FAERS public dashboard.
What does the label list?
From the label: adverse reactionsThe most common adverse reaction is localized vasoconstriction due to extravasation.
From the label: adverse reactions, continuedThe following adverse reactions are described elsewhere in the labeling: • Tissue Ischemia [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1) ] • Cardiac Arrhythmias [see Warnings and Precautions (5.2) ] • Hypotension [see Warnings and Precautions (5.3) ] • Severe Hypersensitivity Reactions [see Warnings and Precautions (5.4) ] The following adverse reactions have been identified during post-approval use of dopamine. Because these reactions are reported voluntarily from a population of uncertain size, it is not always possible to reliably estimate their frequency or establish a causal relationship to drug exposure. Cardiac Disorders: anginal pain, palpitation Gastrointestinal Disorders: nausea, vomiting Metabolism and Nutrition Disorders: azotemia Nervous System Disorders: headache, anxiety Respiratory Disorders: dyspnea Skin and Subcutaneous Tissue Disorders: piloerection Vascular Disorders: hypertension The most common adverse reaction is localized vasoconstriction due to extravasation. ( 6 ) To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Pfizer, Inc. at 1-800-438-1985 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch.
Source: FDA drug label, Hospira, Inc., effective May 12, 2026 (SPL set 08f23f6e-150d-45ea-098e-f2edf64c21a1), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What do FAERS reports show?
3,763 reports list dopamine among the medicines taken, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 1,315 are coded as a death and 1,859 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 19 reactions below, 3 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?
- Dopamine: 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