FDA Adverse Events Reports (FAERS) Summary for METHOTREXATE SODIUM

These tables and charts are based on 80,097 total reports for METHOTREXATE SODIUM (METHOTREXATE SODIUM) received by the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) from 2004 through July 30, 2026.

This FAERS total includes 79,951 pharmaceutical company-submitted and non-U.S. FAERS reports and 146 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 146 U.S. reports filed via the FDA MedWatch voluntary reporting system, view our FDA MedWatch METHOTREXATE SODIUM summary report. (See notes section below for explanation of FDA’s mandatory and voluntary reporting system.)

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

 Side Effect# of FDA Reports
1DRUG INEFFECTIVE19982
2DRUG HYPERSENSITIVITY7849
3OFF LABEL USE6571
4RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS5853
5DRUG INTOLERANCE5665
6NAUSEA5562
7PAIN5258
8JOINT PAIN5257
9CONDITION AGGRAVATED4803
10FATIGUE4685
11JOINT SWELLING3618
12TREATMENT FAILURE3338
13RASH3318
14HAIR LOSS3304
15DIARRHEA2949
16HEADACHE2921
17VOMITING2715
18ABDOMINAL DISCOMFORT2683
19MALAISE2601
20PAIN IN EXTREMITY2463

Latest Known Outcomes for Reactions Reported for METHOTREXATE SODIUM

Latest Known Outcome for Reported ReactionsNumber of Cases
1Unknown Outcome56505
2Patient has not recovered/symtoms have not resolved14072
3Patient recovered13271
4Patient is recovering/symptoms resolving6890
5Patient died4364
6Patient has recovered but has consequent health issues532

Yearly FDA Adverse Event Reports (Table)

YearNumber of Reports
2004784
2005507
2006186
2007273
2008284
2009270
2010169
2011398
2012709
2013833
2014905
20151970
20164790
201710704
201812930
20199529
20207126
20215044
20226144
20236112
20245205
20253938
20261287

Reports by Patient Age Group (Table)

Age GroupNumber of Reports
0-102579
11-202859
21-302434
31-404244
41-508619
51-6014648
61-7016519
71-809453
81-902347
91+134

Based on 63836 reports that included a patient age.

METHOTREXATE SODIUM Total Reports

 Male    Female    Unknown    Total  
 20284    54422    5391    80,097  

Top Countries Reporting

 Country  Number of Reports
United States  34685
Canada  19724
Germany  4030
United Kingdom  2578
France  2535
Japan  2372
China  1728
Italy  1040
EU  968
10 Spain  741

Outcomes for Reports

Serious: 50972
Not Serious: 29123
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      
Rheumatoid arthritis
Product used for unknown indication
Crohn's disease
PSORIATIC ARTHRITIS
Acute lymphocytic leukaemia

Top Companies Reporting

   NORDIC PHARMA
   SANDOZ
   ACCORD
   TEVA
   PFIZER
   ORION

Safety-Related FDA Updates

FDA Approval Date: 1953-01-01

METHOTREXATE SODIUM (METHOTREXATE SODIUM) Rx Drug:
Do not take Methotrexate every day. Severe side effects and death have happened in people who have mistakenly taken Methotrexate every day instead of 1 time each week; fetal toxicity; hypersensitivity
Safety-related Labeling Changes


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

XATMEP (METHOTREXATE SODIUM) Rx Drug:
Safety-related Labeling Changes


Have experience (good or bad) with XATMEP? Rate XATMEP 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 METHOTREXATE SODIUM 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.