Prescription medication · Inotropic Agent (Beta-1 Agonist)
dobutamine
Also sold as Dobutrex. This medicine is used to help your heart work better when it's not pumping enough blood.
Data updated 2026-05-15
- 3,554
- FDA reportsLightly reported
- 3
- InteractionsFew interactions
- In shortage
- FDA status
What the data shows
dobutamine (Dobutrex) is a prescription Inotropic Agent (Beta-1 Agonist), among the least-reported drugs the FDA tracks (3,554 FDA reports), with 3 documented drug interactions.
Reporting volume reflects how widely a drug is used and studied, not how dangerous it is, a FAERS report documents a temporal association, never proof of cause.
dobutamine (Dobutrex) is a prescription Inotropic Agent (Beta-1 Agonist). This medicine is used to help your heart work better when it's not pumping enough blood.
Dobutamine is a medicine that helps your heart pump better. It is used for a short time to treat heart problems caused by weak heart muscles.
Verify with FDA → · CMS NADAC pricing →
Drug Shortage Alert
dobutamine is currently listed as in shortage by the FDA. Affected manufacturer: Hainan Poly Pharm. Co., Ltd.. Status: Available.
View all drug shortages →What it does
This medicine is used to help your heart work better when it's not pumping enough blood.
Common side effects
Increased heart rate, Increased blood pressure, Extra heartbeats
Key warnings
Dobutamine may cause a large increase in heart rate or blood pressure.
The sections below are summarized in plain English from dobutamine's FDA-approved prescribing information. They describe what the official label says, and are not personal medical advice.
How It Works
Dobutamine works by stimulating the heart muscle. This makes your heart beat stronger and pump more blood. It mainly affects the beta-1 receptors in your heart.
Side Effects (from patient reports)
Based on 3,554 FDA adverse event reports.
Most-reported reactions
Adverse reactions in FAERS for dobutamine, by number of reports
- Cardiogenic Shock
Cardiogenic Shock
396 reports
- Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome
Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome
349 reports
- Sepsis
Sepsis
324 reports
- Condition Aggravated
Condition Aggravated
317 reports
- General Physical Health Deterioration
General Physical Health Deterioration
282 reports
- Nausea
Nausea
282 reports
- Vomiting
Vomiting
262 reports
- Abdominal Distension
Abdominal Distension
248 reports
- Ascites
Ascites
246 reports
- Death
Death
241 reports
What this shows Bars show how often each reaction was reported, not how likely it is to happen, a report records a temporal association, never proof that the drug caused it.
Reports over time
Adverse-event reports filed for dobutamine each year to the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS).
Year-to-year volume tracks usage, prescribing, and scrutiny, not a change in per-patient risk. Source: FDA FAERS.
Where dobutamine sits
dobutamine has more FDA adverse-event reports than 21% of the drugs FAERS tracks. A high position reflects how widely a drug is used and watched, not how dangerous it is.
Percentile across all drugs PlainMeds tracks by FAERS report volume. The dot is dobutamine; the line is the median (50th percentile).
FDA Adverse Event Report Analysis
Detailed analysis of 3,554 reports from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). Reports span 2004–2025.
Total Reports
3,554
Reports Mentioning Death
1,361
38.3% of reports — not proof of cause
Hospitalization Reports
1,820
Top Indication
Product Used For Unknown Indication
Gender Distribution
Age Distribution
Most Reported Adverse Reactions (FAERS)
| # | Reaction | Reports |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | CARDIOGENIC SHOCK | 396 |
| 4 | MULTIPLE ORGAN DYSFUNCTION SYNDROME | 349 |
| 5 | SEPSIS | 324 |
| 6 | CONDITION AGGRAVATED | 317 |
| 7 | GENERAL PHYSICAL HEALTH DETERIORATION | 282 |
| 8 | NAUSEA | 282 |
| 9 | VOMITING | 262 |
| 10 | ABDOMINAL DISTENSION | 248 |
| 11 | ASCITES | 246 |
| 12 | DEATH | 241 |
| 13 | HYPONATRAEMIA | 241 |
| 14 | STRESS | 237 |
| 15 | ABDOMINAL PAIN | 234 |
| 16 | APPENDICITIS | 229 |
| 17 | CONSTIPATION | 226 |
Reactions in Death Reports
Reactions in Hospitalization Reports
Source: FDA FAERS (Adverse Event Reporting System) Reports are voluntary and do not establish causation
Serious Warnings
Dobutamine may cause a large increase in heart rate or blood pressure. Tell your doctor if you have a history of heart problems. In rare cases, a sudden drop in blood pressure can occur.
Known Drug Interactions
7.2 Drugs Metabolized by Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) Drugs known to be metabolized by COMT, such as isoproterenol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine, dobutamine, alpha-methyldopa, apomorphine, isoetherine, and bitolterol should be administered with caution in patients receiving entacapone regardless of the route of administration (including inhalation), as their interaction may result in increased heart rates, possibly arrhythmias, and excessive changes in blood pressure [ see Warnings and Precautions (5.10) ].
Mechanism: These drugs are broken down by the same enzyme, so taking them at the same time can lead to higher drug levels. This can cause dangerous changes in blood pressure or an irregular heartbeat.
7.3 Antihypertensive Drugs and Pressor Agents Because of possible effects on blood pressure, atomoxetine should be used cautiously with antihypertensive drugs and pressor agents (e.g., dopamine, dobutamine) or other drugs that increase blood pressure.
Mechanism: Both drugs can raise blood pressure, so taking them together might cause an even higher increase in blood pressure.
Isoproterenol and Dobutamine Propranolol is a competitive inhibitor of beta-receptor agonists, and its effects can be reversed by administration of such agents, e.g., dobutamine or isoproterenol. Also, propranolol may reduce sensitivity to dobutamine stress echocardiography in patients undergoing evaluation for myocardial ischemia.
Mechanism: Propranolol blocks the same receptors that dobutamine tries to activate, which stops dobutamine from working correctly. This can also make heart stress tests less accurate because the heart does not respond to the medicine as expected.
This is a plain-language summary of FDA-label interaction records and does not provide individual medication-combination directions.
Common Questions
How long will I be on dobutamine?
Can dobutamine be taken at home?
What if my blood pressure gets too high?
Will dobutamine cure my heart problem?
Can I take other medicines with dobutamine?
What should I tell my doctor before starting dobutamine?
Will dobutamine affect my potassium levels?
What if the dobutamine solution looks pink?
Can dobutamine be used for children?
When should I not take dobutamine?
What are the common side effects of dobutamine?
Does dobutamine interact with other medications?
What drug class is dobutamine?
What pregnancy or breastfeeding source fields are listed for dobutamine?
Is dobutamine currently in shortage?
Related Medications in Inotropic Agent (Beta-1 Agonist)
Other drugs grouped near dobutamine - same-class peers and common alternatives.
adenosine
Adenocard
Adenosine (Adenocard) is a medicine used to treat certain types of irregular heartbeats.
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amiodarone
Cordarone, Pacerone
Amiodarone (Pacerone) is a medicine used to treat life-threatening, irregular heartbeats.
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atropine
AtroPen
Atropine is a medicine that can temporarily block severe effects on your body.
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bumetanide
Bumex
Bumetanide is a water pill (diuretic).
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carvedilol
Coreg
Carvedilol is a medicine that lowers blood pressure and helps your heart work better.
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Compare beyond drug class
Nationwide peers by FAERS volume & death-report share
Two PlainMeds-derived comparison paths for dobutamine: nearest FDA FAERS report volume and nearest death-report share among drugs with at least 1,000 logged reports, excluding same-class neighbors listed above. Counts reflect reporting volume, not proven individual harm.
Similar FAERS report volume
Nearest drugs by total FAERS reports. This record: 3,554.
Similar death-report share
Nearest drugs by FAERS death-report share. This record: 38.29%.
- vasopressin Δ 1.20 pts · 4,135 reports · Vasopressin Receptor Agonist 39.49%death share
- amphotericin B Δ 1.71 pts · 17,512 reports · Polyene Antifungal 36.59%death share
- micafungin Δ 2.47 pts · 4,779 reports · Echinocandin Antifungal 35.82%death share
- pseudoephedrine Δ 4.90 pts · 9,450 reports · Decongestant 33.40%death share
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What the FDA Data Shows for dobutamine
The FDA label for dobutamine (sold under brand names such as Dobutrex) classifies it as a prescription-only medication in the Inotropic Agent (Beta-1 Agonist) class. This medicine is used to help your heart work better when it's not pumping enough blood. Official labeling lists 3 commonly reported side effects, including Increased heart rate, Increased blood pressure, Extra heartbeats.
Post-market surveillance from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) captures real-world experience. For this drug, FAERS contains 3,554 voluntary reports. The database also lists 3 documented drug interactions derived from FDA labeling, with the top-flagged interaction rated moderate severity. Acquisition-cost data is surveyed weekly by CMS and updated as manufacturers report changes.
Report counts do not establish causation, a FAERS entry documents a temporal association, not proof that the drug produced the outcome. Widely prescribed medications naturally accumulate more reports than niche therapies, so raw totals must be interpreted alongside total exposure. Shortage status, recall history, and patent information are separate source-record fields. This page is a public FDA/CMS registry and does not provide medical, treatment, substitution, or medication-change directions.
Data Sources
Drug labeling: FDA Drug Labels (SPL/DailyMed). Adverse events: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). Shortage status: FDA Drug Shortages Database.
FAERS reports are voluntary and do not establish causation. Drug interactions are derived from FDA labeling and clinical references. This registry does not provide medication decisions.
Last updated: January 6, 2026
PlainMeds is rendered directly from FDA openFDA/FAERS extracts, DailyMed labels, and CMS drug-pricing files, no number is typed in by an editor. FAERS counts, recalls, shortages, and price figures on this page are queried live from those federal extracts. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-05-15. Primary sources: openFDA / FAERS, DailyMed and CMS Part B ASP.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Data currency: FDA FAERS adverse-event reports through 2025, CMS NADAC acquisition-cost pricing effective December 2024, compiled from the source snapshot dated . See our methodology for per-source dates and refresh cadence. Spot a figure that looks wrong? Report a data issue.
All federal data sources used on this page
- FDA Orange Book - approved drug products with therapeutic equivalence. accessdata.fda.gov/cder/ob
- FDA DailyMed - NIH-hosted drug labeling for FDA-approved meds. dailymed.nlm.nih.gov
- FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) - post-marketing safety surveillance. fda.gov/drugs/faers
- NLM RxNorm - standardized clinical drug nomenclature. nlm.nih.gov/research/umls/rxnorm
- CMS Medicare Part B Drug Average Sales Price Files - federal drug pricing data. cms.gov/medicare/part-b-drugs/asp
- FDA Drug Shortages Database - current and resolved drug shortage tracking. accessdata.fda.gov/drugshortages