FDA Adverse Events Reports (FAERS) Summary for ALEVE
These tables and charts are based on 82,102 total reports for ALEVE (NAPROXEN SODIUM) received by the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) from 2004 through April 28, 2026.
This FAERS total includes 80,354 pharmaceutical company-submitted and non-U.S. FAERS reports and 1,748 U.S. consumer or healthcare provider-submitted
MedWatch reports. For a separate summary of the 1,748 U.S. reports
filed via the FDA MedWatch voluntary reporting system, view our FDA MedWatch ALEVE summary report.
(See notes section below for explanation of FDA’s mandatory and voluntary reporting system.)
Top 20 Adverse Effects Associated with ALEVE (reported in FAERS Database) Latest Known Outcomes for Reactions Reported for ALEVE Side Effect # of FDA Reports 1 DRUG INEFFECTIVE 13500 2 NO ADVERSE EVENT 4799 3 HEADACHE 4170 4 PRODUCT USE ISSUE 4085 5 PAIN 3556 6 NAUSEA 3185 7 FATIGUE 2858 8 DIZZINESS 2628 9 INCORRECT DRUG ADMINISTRATION DURATION 2591 10 JOINT PAIN 2292 11 ABDOMINAL PAIN UPPER 2063 12 DIARRHEA 2033 13 ITCHING 1864 14 SHORTNESS OF BREATH 1840 15 ABDOMINAL DISCOMFORT 1770 16 BACK PAIN 1728 17 VOMITING 1719 18 OFF LABEL USE 1716 19 DRUG EFFECT INCREASED 1701 20 INSOMNIA 1671 Latest Known Outcome for Reported Reactions Number of Cases 1 Unknown Outcome 29390 2 Patient has not recovered/symtoms have not resolved 10443 3 Patient recovered 9128 4 Patient is recovering/symptoms resolving 3039 5 Patient died 841 6 Patient has recovered but has consequent health issues 193
ALEVE Total Reports
| Male | Female | Unknown | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20586 | 45291 | 16225 | 82,102 |
Top Countries Reporting
| Country | Number of Reports | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 52932 |
| 2 | Canada | 1057 |
| 3 | France | 89 |
| 4 | Puerto Rico | 30 |
| 5 | United Kingdom | 25 |
| 6 | Netherlands | 21 |
| 7 | Spain | 19 |
| 8 | Poland | 8 |
| 9 | EU | 7 |
| 10 | Costa Rica | 4 |
Outcomes for Reports
Serious: 21056
Not Serious: 61041
Note: A serious outcome means the adverse event resulted in death, a life threatening condition, hospitalization, disability, congenital anomaly, or other serious condition.
| Top Indications | |
| Pain | |
| Product used for unknown indication | |
| Headache | |
| Rheumatoid arthritis | |
| Back pain | |
Top Companies Reporting
| BAYER | |
| BAYER HEALTHCARE LLC | |
| BAYER HEALTHCARE LLC | |
FDA Approval Date: 1994-01-11 ALEVE (NAPROXEN SODIUM) Over-the-counter Drug: ALEVE (NAPROXEN SODIUM) Over-the-counter Drug: For serious adverse events, report them to the FDA by contacting the drug manufacturer or report directly through the
MedWatch voluntary reporting form.
This report, created by AskaPatient.com, is derived from the cases for ALEVE reported to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) and
obtained from Open FDA. Data was last
updated with reports received through April 28, 2026.
Adverse Event Reports are submitted to the FAERS database by pharmaceutical companies (mandatory reporting is required by manufacturers, distributors, or importers).
Health care providers such as doctors (voluntary reporting), and patients themselves (voluntary reporting)
report to the FDA directly through the MedWatch program. Those MedWatch
reports are coded and included in the FAERS database. This report mainly
consists of the mandatory reports, because the MedWatch reports are a small
percentage (3 - 5%) of total reports. Link to the MedWatch summary report at
the top of the page for a summary of the directly reported
(voluntary) adverse events for this drug.The number of reports included here might differ
somewhat from the number of reports in the downloadable quarterly FAERS
reports and in the online FAERS dashboard, due to lags in reporting, drug
name differences,
duplicates, and other factors. Open FDA states that it only includes the
most recent version of a case report. It also adds the disclaimer:
"Do not rely on openFDA to make
decisions regarding medical care. While we make every effort to ensure that
data is accurate, you should assume all results are unvalidated."
FDA uses the "MedDRA" classification system to describe reported adverse
reactions. MedDRA is a standardized medical terminology that facilitates
sharing of regulatory information internationally. In some cases, "patient
friendly" terms for the layman designated by MedDRA have been substituted
for medical jargon. Please
contact us
with questions or comments about this report.
Safety-Related FDA Updates
FDA recommends avoiding use of NSAIDs in pregnancy at 20 weeks or later because they can result in low amniotic fluid; NSAIDs may cause rare kidney problems in unborn babies FDA Safety Communication
Safety-related Labeling Changes
Have experience (good or bad) with ALEVE? Rate ALEVE at Ask a Patient.
Notes
This summary includes ALL reports where the
drug is a "primary OR secondary OR suspected interacting" drug. Typically, reports are filed for the most serious type or "event" and do not represent incidental or minor side effects. The majority
of these reports are mandatory reports submitted by pharmaceutical
companies, who receive complaints from consumers. The reactions, side effects, or "adverse events," represent up to the 20 most
frequently occuring events in the database for a drug related to the event.
This report also features counts of latest known outcomes associated with
reported side effects, but does not provide the specific outcomes for specific
adverse events.
