Drug side effects
ranitidine Side Effects
The reactions most often reported to the FDA for ranitidine (also sold as Zantac), with demographics, serious outcomes, and reporting trends.
Data updated 2026-05-15
- 197,405
- FAERS reports
Data from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS), 1999 to 2025. A FAERS report records a temporal association, not proof of cause. See our methodology for how figures are compiled and de-duplicated.
The most commonly reported side effects of ranitidine come from 197,405 reports to the FDA, broken down here by frequency, patient demographics, and serious outcomes.
This page analyzes 197,405 reports to the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) for ranitidine (Zantac): the reactions reported most often, who reported them, serious outcomes such as hospitalization, and year-over-year trends. A FAERS report does not prove the drug caused the effect, and report volume tracks how widely a drug is used, not how likely an effect is for any one person. Educational information, not medical advice.
Total Reports
197,405
Reports Mentioning Death
15,440
7.8% of reports — not proof the medicine caused the death
Hospitalizations
25,953
13.1% of reports
Top Indication
Dyspepsia
Most Reported Adverse Reactions
Who Reports Side Effects
Gender Distribution
Age Distribution
Reporting Trend by Year
Reactions in Death Reports
Top reactions reported in 15,440 reports where death was an outcome. These are voluntarily reported and do not establish causation.
| Reaction | Reports |
|---|---|
| DEATH | 2,248 |
| PANCREATIC CARCINOMA | 1,995 |
| HEPATIC CANCER | 1,871 |
| NEOPLASM MALIGNANT | 1,623 |
| OESOPHAGEAL CARCINOMA | 1,456 |
| GASTRIC CANCER | 1,233 |
| LUNG NEOPLASM MALIGNANT | 1,139 |
| COLORECTAL CANCER | 1,013 |
| INCORRECT DOSE ADMINISTERED | 971 |
| BLADDER CANCER | 883 |
| PNEUMONIA | 791 |
| RENAL CANCER | 700 |
| DIARRHOEA | 684 |
| INJURY | 651 |
| FATIGUE | 625 |
| NAUSEA | 613 |
| VOMITING | 608 |
| PAIN | 598 |
| ASTHENIA | 536 |
Reactions in Hospitalization Reports
Top reactions in 25,953 reports where hospitalization was an outcome.
| Reaction | Reports |
|---|---|
| NAUSEA | 2,042 |
| DIARRHOEA | 1,967 |
| DYSPNOEA | 1,934 |
| VOMITING | 1,870 |
| PNEUMONIA | 1,740 |
| FATIGUE | 1,719 |
| PAIN | 1,521 |
| PYREXIA | 1,404 |
| ASTHENIA | 1,390 |
| HEADACHE | 1,364 |
| INCORRECT DOSE ADMINISTERED | 1,269 |
| MALAISE | 1,236 |
| DIZZINESS | 1,235 |
| ACUTE KIDNEY INJURY | 1,226 |
| FALL | 1,169 |
| ABDOMINAL PAIN | 1,108 |
| ARTHRALGIA | 1,103 |
| HYPERTENSION | 1,092 |
Nearby, Related Medications
What the FAERS Data Reveals About ranitidine Side Effects
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) contains 197,405 voluntary reports linked to ranitidine and its brand equivalents (Zantac), spanning 1999 through 2025. Of those, 15,440 (7.8%) listed death as an outcome and 25,953 (13.1%) involved hospitalization. The most common indication reported alongside adverse events was Dyspepsia.
Demographic breakdowns help contextualize who is being exposed to the drug. Of reports with known sex, 52% were female and 48% male; age distribution skews toward 45-64, with 43,800 reports in that bracket. The single most reported reaction is breast cancer with 24,853 submissions, followed by prostate cancer and colorectal cancer.
How to read these numbers
FAERS is a signal-detection tool, not a scorecard. Reports are voluntary, and a single case may list multiple suspect drugs, so numbers above should not be read as incidence rates or per-patient risk. Widely prescribed drugs naturally accumulate more reports than niche therapies even when individual risk is low. These aggregates are useful for spotting patterns that merit further pharmacovigilance, not for choosing between medications. This page is for educational reference only and is not medical advice, speak with a licensed clinician about any side-effect concerns.
Drugs With a Similar FAERS Report Volume
Other medications with a total FDA adverse-event report count closest to ranitidine's 197,405.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.