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What the label lists and what reports show

Liraglutide side effects

Liraglutide's FDA label: “Most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥5%) in clinical trials are nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite, dyspepsia, constipation.” FAERS holds 49,117 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 nausea (7,176 reports).

  • Generic listed
  • In shortage
  • Boxed warning

Check it at the source: the liraglutide FDA label on DailyMed (effective October 14, 2025, Novo Nordisk); the FDA FAERS public dashboard.

What does the patient leaflet say about side effects?

From the patient leaflet: What are the possible side effects of VICTOZA?

VICTOZA may cause serious side effects, including: • See “What is the most important information I should know about VICTOZA?” • inflammation of your pancreas (pancreatitis). Stop using VICTOZA and call your healthcare provider right away if you have severe pain in your stomach area (abdomen) that will not go away, with or without vomiting. You may feel the pain from your abdomen to your back. • low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). Your risk for getting low blood sugar may be higher if you use VICTOZA with another medicine that can cause low blood sugar, such as a sulfonylurea or insulin. In children who are 10 years of age and older, the risk for low blood sugar may be higher with VICTOZA regardless of use with another medicine that can also lower blood sugar. […]

Source: FDA drug label, Novo Nordisk, effective October 14, 2025 (SPL set 5a9ef4ea-c76a-4d34-a604-27c5b505f5a4), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed

What does the label list?

From the label: adverse reactions

Most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥5%) in clinical trials are nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite, dyspepsia, constipation.

Table 2. Adult Incidence (%) and Rate (episodes/patient year) of Hypoglycemia in 26-Week Combination Therapy Placebo-controlled Trials

Add-on to MetforminPlacebo Comparator Placebo + Metformin (N=121)VICTOZA Treatment VICTOZA + Metformin (N=724)
Patient not able to self-treat00.1 (0.001)
Patient able to self-treat2.5 (0.06)3.6 (0.05)
Patient not able to self-treat00.1 (0.003)
Patient able to self-treat2.6 (0.17)7.5 (0.38)
Not classified00.9 (0.05)
Patient not able to self-treat00
Patient able to self-treat4.6 (0.15)7.9 (0.49)
Not classified1.1 (0.03)0.6 (0.01)
Patient not able to self-treat02.2 (0.06)
Patient able to self-treat16.7 (0.95)27.4 (1.16)
Not classified00

Rows and numbers as the label prints them, under its own column headings (the first rows of a longer table where it runs on). A reaction in a trial table is not necessarily caused by the medicine, and trials differ from everyday use.

From the label: adverse reactions, continued

The following serious adverse reactions are described below or elsewhere in the prescribing information: • Risk of Thyroid C-cell Tumors [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.1 )] • Acute Pancreatitis [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.2 )] • Hypoglycemia [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.4 )] • Acute Kidney Injury Due to Volume Depletion [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.5 )] • Severe Gastrointestinal Adverse Reactions [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.6 )] • Hypersensitivity Reactions [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.6 )] • Acute Gallbladder Disease [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.8 )] • Pulmonary Aspiration During General Anesthesia or Deep Sedation [see Warnings and Precautions ( 5.9 )] • Most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥5%) in clinical trials are nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite, dyspepsia, constipation. (6.1) • Immunogenicity-related events, including urticaria, were more common among VICTOZA-treated patients (0.8%) than among comparator-treated patients (0.4%) in clinical trials. (12.6) To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Novo Nordisk Inc. at 1-877-484-2869 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch. …

Source: FDA drug label, Novo Nordisk, effective October 14, 2025 (SPL set 5a9ef4ea-c76a-4d34-a604-27c5b505f5a4), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed

What do FAERS reports show?

49,117 reports list liraglutide among the medicines taken, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 1,765 are coded as a death and 10,774 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 23 reactions below, 9 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?

Liraglutide: the full record
label, generics, price, shortages, recalls
Side effects hub
the most reported medicines and reactions