Praziquantel

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3,343 adverse event reports submitted to the FDA

Important: Adverse event reports do not establish that a drug caused or contributed to the event. Consult your veterinarian before making treatment decisions.
3,343
Total Reports
103
Deaths Reported
310.0%
Death Rate

Active Ingredients

Praziquantel

Administration Routes

OralUnknownSubcutaneousParenteralIntramuscularTopicalOtherOphthalmicSubconjunctivalIntraocular

Species Affected

Cat 1,469
Unknown 958
Dog 883
Human 28
Other 2
Cockatiel 1
Chinchilla 1
Chicken 1

Most Affected Breeds

Unknown 990
Domestic Shorthair 689
Cat (unknown) 447
Domestic Longhair 123
Dog (unknown) 91
Retriever - Labrador 72
Chihuahua 61
Domestic Mediumhair 58
Crossbred Canine/dog 55
Siamese 41

Most Reported Reactions

Lack of efficacy (endoparasite) - tapeworm 592
Vomiting 314
Product label issues 278
Underfilling, Bottles 251
Lethargy (see also Central nervous system depression in 'Neurological') 249
Tablets, Abnormal 202
Diarrhoea 195
Emesis 195
Patient instructions for use on label confusing 169
Behavioural disorder NOS 165
Product Defect, General 155
Anorexia 136

Outcome Breakdown

Outcome Unknown
1,353 (57.5%)
Recovered/Normal
644 (27.4%)
Ongoing
246 (10.5%)
Died
80 (3.4%)
Euthanized
23 (1.0%)
Recovered with Sequela
6 (0.3%)

Data Summary

Metric Value
Total adverse event reports 3,343
Reports involving death 103
Case-fatality rate (reported events) 310.0%
Distinct species in reports 8
Distinct breeds in reports 20
Distinct reactions reported 20
Active ingredients on file 1

Source: FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine — Adverse Event Reporting (CVM AER). Counts reflect voluntary reports only.

Praziquantel Adverse Event Insights

The FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine database currently holds 3,343 adverse event reports referencing Praziquantel, including 103 reports in which the animal died — a 310.0% case-fatality figure among reported events only, not a population-level mortality rate. Active ingredient on file: Praziquantel. Reported administration routes include Oral, Unknown, Subcutaneous, Parenteral. These numbers reflect voluntary submissions from pet owners, veterinarians, and manufacturers and therefore under-represent mild events and over-represent severe ones — a pattern the FDA has documented repeatedly for pharmacovigilance datasets.

The species most frequently named in Praziquantel reports are Cat (1,469 reports), Unknown (958 reports), Dog (883 reports), with Cat accounting for the largest share. Within those species, Unknown (990), Domestic Shorthair (689), Cat (unknown) (447) appear most often — though breed popularity and ownership density shape these counts as much as any drug-specific sensitivity. This distribution matters because the same active ingredient can behave very differently across body sizes, ages, and species physiology.

The most commonly reported clinical signs associated with Praziquantel are Lack of efficacy (endoparasite) - tapeworm (592), Vomiting (314), Product label issues (278), Underfilling, Bottles (251). Of the 2,352 reports with a coded outcome, Outcome Unknown is the leading category at 57.5%. Because FDA adverse event data describes correlation rather than causation, these figures are best used to frame informed questions with a veterinarian and to compare reporting patterns across related products — not as a standalone safety verdict on Praziquantel.

Source: FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine — Adverse Event Reports FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine — Adverse Event Reports Data reflects voluntary submissions and may not represent actual incidence rates

Related

Data sourced from official AKC, AVMA, ACVO, and breed-club veterinary references. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainBreed Editorial