FDA Adverse Events Reports (FAERS) Summary for AMBIEN

These tables and charts are based on 63,572 total reports for AMBIEN (ZOLPIDEM TARTRATE) received by the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) from 2004 through July 30, 2026.

This FAERS total includes 60,996 pharmaceutical company-submitted and non-U.S. FAERS reports and 2,576 U.S. consumer or healthcare provider-submitted MedWatch reports. Adverse events listed on this page represent serious and sometimes rare adverse events reported to pharmaceutical companies, and often do not represent typical side effects for the medication. Find common side effects in the most recent official drug label.

For a separate summary of the 2,576 U.S. reports filed via the FDA MedWatch voluntary reporting system, view our FDA MedWatch AMBIEN summary report. (See notes section below for explanation of FDA’s mandatory and voluntary reporting system.)

Top 20 Adverse Effects Associated with AMBIEN (reported in FAERS Database)

 Side Effect# of FDA Reports
1NAUSEA5030
2FATIGUE4974
3DRUG INEFFECTIVE4657
4PAIN4079
5INSOMNIA3960
6HEADACHE3743
7DIARRHEA3355
8ANXIETY3308
9DIZZINESS3108
10SHORTNESS OF BREATH3082
11DEPRESSION2914
12FALL2825
13VOMITING2653
14LACK OF STRENGTH AND ENERGY (ASTHENIA)2580
15JOINT PAIN2260
16MALAISE1966
17BACK PAIN1962
18WEIGHT DECREASED1938
19PAIN IN EXTREMITY1937
20FEELING ABNORMAL1928

Latest Known Outcomes for Reactions Reported for AMBIEN

Latest Known Outcome for Reported ReactionsNumber of Cases
1Unknown Outcome26712
2Patient has not recovered/symtoms have not resolved12567
3Patient recovered10715
4Patient is recovering/symptoms resolving4654
5Patient died2179
6Patient has recovered but has consequent health issues328

Yearly FDA Adverse Event Reports (Table)

YearNumber of Reports
20011
20021
20033
20041410
20051943
20062783
20072516
20082061
20092837
20103407
20113102
20124111
20133752
20143592
20155170
20165236
20173738
20184535
20193303
20202608
20211681
20221458
20231204
20241144
20251354
2026622

Reports by Patient Age Group (Table)

Age GroupNumber of Reports
0-10113
11-20345
21-301667
31-403815
41-506901
51-609776
61-708928
71-805077
81-901732
91+190

Based on 38544 reports that included a patient age.

AMBIEN Total Reports

 Male    Female    Unknown    Total  
 19666    40662    3244    63,572  

Top Countries Reporting

 Country  Number of Reports
United States  40453
Puerto Rico  218
China  77
EU  41
Israel  31
France  24
Canada  20
United Kingdom  15
Poland  15
10 Australia  12

Outcomes for Reports

Serious: 37355
Not Serious: 26209
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      
Insomnia
Product used for unknown indication
Psychophysiologic insomnia

Top Companies Reporting

   SANOFI AVENTIS
   TAKEDA

Safety-Related FDA Updates

FDA Approval Date: 1992-12-16

AMBIEN (ZOLPIDEM TARTRATE) Rx Drug:
Safety-related Labeling Changes


Have experience (good or bad) with AMBIEN? Rate AMBIEN at Ask a Patient.

For serious adverse events, report them to the FDA by contacting the drug manufacturer or report directly through the MedWatch voluntary reporting form.

Notes

Events listed on this page represent serious and often rare adverse events reported to pharmaceutical companies, and do not represent typical side effects for the medication. Find common side effects on the most recent official drug label This report, created by AskaPatient.com, is derived from the cases for AMBIEN 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 July 30, 2026.

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.

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.