Venlafaxine (Oral Route)

Free

E-newsletter

Subscribe to Housecall

Our weekly general interest
e-newsletter keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics.

Side Effects

Along with its needed effects, a medicine may cause some unwanted effects. Although not all of these side effects may occur, if they do occur they may need medical attention.

Check with your doctor immediately if any of the following side effects occur:

• Changes in vision, such as blurred vision
• Headache
• High blood pressure

• Chest pain
• Fast or irregular heartbeat
• Mood or mental changes
• Ringing or buzzing in the ears

• Convulsions (seizures)
• Itching or skin rash
• Light-headedness or fainting, especially when getting up suddenly from a sitting or lying position
• Menstrual changes
• Problems in urinating or in holding urine
• Swelling
• Talking, feeling, and acting with excitement that you cannot control
• Trouble with breathing

• Abdominal or stomach pain
• Agitation
• Black, tarry stools
• Bleeding gums
• Blistering, peeling, loosening of skin
• Bloating of the abdomen
• Blood in eye
• Bloody urine
• Bloody, black, or tarry stools
• Blue-green to black skin
• Chest pain or discomfort
• Confusion
• Confusion as to time, place, or person
• Cough or hoarseness
• Coughing up blood
• Dark urine
• Decreased awareness or responsiveness
• Decreased frequency or amount of urine
• Depression
• Difficulty with breathing or swallowing
• Doing the opposite of what one is requested to do
• Dry cough
• Extra heartbeats
• Eye pain
• Fast, pounding, slow, or irregular heartbeat or pulse
• Fever with or without chills
• General feeling of tiredness or weakness
• Hallucinations
• Hearing loss
• High fever
• Hives
• Holding false beliefs that can not be changed by fact
• Hostility
• Increased menstrual flow or vaginal bleeding
• Increased thirst
• Indigestion
• Involuntary movements
• Irregular heartbeats
• Irritability
• Joint or muscle pain
• Lethargy
• Light-colored stools
• Lip smacking or puckering
• Loss of consciousness or coma
• Low blood pressure
• Lower back or side pain
• Mimicry of speech or movements
• Muscle cramps or spasms
• Muscle pain or stiffness
• Muscle twitching
• Nosebleeds
• Overactive reflexes
• Pain, redness, or swelling in the arm or leg
• Painful or difficult urination
• Pains in stomach, side, or abdomen, possibly radiating to the back
• Palpitations
• Panic
• Paralysis
• Peculiar postures or movements, mannerisms, or grimacing
• Poor coordination
• Pounding or rapid pulse
• Prolonged bleeding from cuts
• Puffiness or swelling of the eyelids or around the eyes, face, lips, or tongue
• Puffing of cheeks
• Rapid breathing
• Rapid or worm-like movements of the tongue
• Rapid weight gain
• Rash
• Recurrent fainting
• Red or dark brown urine
• Red skin lesions, often with a purple center
• Red, irritated eyes
• Redness in the whites of the eyes
• Restlessness
• Severe muscle stiffness
• Severe sleepiness
• Shivering
• Shock-like electrical sensations
• Sore throat
• Sores, ulcers, or white spots in the mouth or on the lips
• Stupor
• Sweating
• Swelling of the face, lower legs, ankles, hands, or fingers
• Swollen or painful glands
• Tightness in the chest
• Tiredness
• Twitching, twisting, uncontrolled repetitive movements of the tongue, lips, face, arms, or legs
• Unable or unwilling to speak
• Uncontrolled chewing movements
• Uncontrolled movements of the arms and legs
• Unexplained bleeding or bruising
• Unpleasant breath odor
• Unusual excitement, nervousness, or restlessness
• Unusually pale skin
• Vomiting of blood or material that looks like coffee grounds
• Weight gain
• Wheezing
• Yellow eyes or skin

Get emergency help immediately if any of the following symptoms of overdose occur:

• Agitation
• Convulsions (seizures)
• Drowsiness
• Extreme tiredness or weakness
• Fast heartbeat
• Tingling, burning, or prickling sensations
• Trembling or shaking

Some side effects may occur that usually do not need medical attention. These side effects may go away during treatment as your body adjusts to the medicine. Also, your health care professional may be able to tell you about ways to prevent or reduce some of these side effects. Check with your health care professional if any of the following side effects continue or are bothersome or if you have any questions about them:

• Abnormal dreams
• Anxiety or nervousness
• Chills
• Constipation
• Decrease in sexual desire or ability
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness
• Drowsiness
• Dry mouth
• Heartburn
• Increased sweating
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea
• Stomach pain or gas
• Stuffy or runny nose
• Tingling, burning, or prickly sensations
• Trembling or shaking
• Trouble with sleeping
• Unusual tiredness or weakness
• Vomiting
• Weight loss

• Change in sense of taste
• Muscle tension
• Yawning

• Night sweats

After you stop using this medicine, it may still produce some side effects that need attention. During this period of time, check with your doctor immediately if you notice the following side effects:

• Actions that are out of control
• Anxiety
• Changes in dreaming
• Continuing ringing or buzzing or other unexplained noise in the ears
• Convulsions (seizures)
• Crying
• Depersonalization
• Diarrhea
• Difficulty with coordination
• Dizziness
• Dry mouth
• Dysphoria
• Euphoria
• Fear
• Feeling of constant movement of self or surroundings
• Feeling unwell or unhappy
• Headache
• Hearing loss
• Hyperventilation
• Increased sweating
• Irregular heartbeats
• Irritability
• Light-headedness
• Loss of appetite
• Loss of bladder control
• Mental depression
• Mood or mental changes
• Muscle spasm or jerking of all extremities
• Nausea
• Nervousness
• Nightmares
• Paranoia
• Quick to react or overreact emotionally
• Rapidly changing moods
• Restlessness
• Sensation of spinning
• Sensory disturbances (including shock-like electrical sensations)
• Shakiness in legs, arms, hands, or feet
• Shaking
• Shortness of breath
• Sleeping or unusual drowsiness
• Sudden loss of consciousness
• Talking, feeling, and acting with excitement
• Trembling or shaking of hands or feet
• Trouble with sleeping
• Twitches of the muscles under the skin
• Unusual drowsiness, dullness, or the feeling of sluggishness
• Unusual tiredness or weakness
• Vomiting
• Weight loss

Other side effects not listed may also occur in some patients. If you notice any other effects, check with your healthcare professional.

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Copyright © 2013 Thomson Healthcare Inc. All rights reserved. Information is for End User's use only and may not be sold, redistributed or otherwise used for commercial purposes.