Safety information for pregnancy and breastfeeding
Pregnancy
In mice, rats, and rabbits, cetirizine was not teratogenic at oral doses up to 96, 225, and 135 mg/kg, respectively (approximately 40, 180 and 220 times the maximum recommended daily oral dose in adults).
Breastfeeding
Cetirizine has been reported to be excreted in human breast milk.
Always consult your doctor or midwife before taking any medicine during pregnancy or while breastfeeding. Source: DrugBank (CC BY-NC 4.0).
Official documents, adverse reaction reporting, and safety monitoring
Report a side effect
Submit a Yellow Card report to the MHRA
Official medicine documents
Yellow Card
Report side effects (MHRA)
Drug safety updates
MHRA alerts for Cetirizine
Safety monitoring data
Yellow Card reports
The MHRA Yellow Card scheme collects reports of suspected side effects from healthcare professionals and patients. View the Drug Analysis Profile (iDAP) for real-world adverse reaction data.
View Drug Analysis Profile
Suspected adverse reactions reported for Cetirizine
Browse all iDAP reports
Interactive Drug Analysis Profiles for all medicines
Report a side effect
Submit a Yellow Card report to the MHRA
Data from the MHRA Yellow Card scheme. A reported reaction does not necessarily mean the medicine caused it. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
EudraVigilance
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) collects suspected adverse reaction reports from across the EU/EEA through the EudraVigilance system. Search for safety data on this medicine.
View EudraVigilance report
Suspected adverse reactions reported for Cetirizine
About EudraVigilance
Learn about EU pharmacovigilance and safety monitoring
EudraVigilance data is published by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). A suspected adverse reaction is not necessarily caused by the medicine.
1 branded products available
Part of the Benadryl brand family (generic: Cetirizine)
MHRA licensed products
View all licensed products for Cetirizine on the MHRA register
WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
10 mg
Not a recommended dose. The DDD is the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug used for its main indication in adults. It is a statistical measure used for research and comparison purposes only.
Source: WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology, distributed via the NHS dm+d supplementary mapping files (NHSBSA). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Therapeutically similar medicines
Similarity is based on WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification and on a factual NHS dm+d therapeutic-grouping code prefix. Source data: NHS dm+d via TRUD (OGL v3.0), WHO ATC/DDD Index.
NHS prescribing volume and spending trends
Guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
NICE clinical guidance(3)
Chronic urticaria: off-label doses of cetirizine (ESUOM31)
Insect bites and stings: antimicrobial prescribing (NG182)
Difelikefalin for treating pruritus in people having haemodialysis (TA890)
Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Check stock at pharmacies and supply information
Pharmacy stock checkers
Search for this medicine at major UK pharmacy chains. These links open the retailer's own website — results depend on their current online catalogue.
Supply & safety information
Official UK regulator monitoring and safety alerts
Pharmacy links redirect to the retailer's own search and do not represent real-time stock levels. Shortage and safety information sourced from MHRA drug safety updates (gov.uk, Crown Copyright under OGL v3.0).
Codes for healthcare professionals and prescribing systems
These codes are used by healthcare IT systems and prescribers to identify this medicine.
NHS UK identifiers
Browse tools
SNOMED CT and dm+d codes from NHS TRUD (Technology Reference data Update Distribution), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. ATC codes from the WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology (whocc.no).
Active and completed clinical studies from ClinicalTrials.gov
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH). Data accessed via ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. Trial information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Academic studies and reviews for this medicine's active substance
Showing the 50 most relevant studies.
Reviews & meta-analyses: 11 · Randomised trials: 8 · 1996–2026
Showing the 50 most relevant studies, sorted by most relevant.
John O. Warner
Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2001
Thomas L. Diepgen
Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, 2002
G. Di Lorenzo, M. L. Pacor, M. E. Pellitteri, et al.
Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 2004
A. Schapowal
BMJ, 2002
2026
Fatma Etwel, Nada Djokanovic, M. Moretti, et al.
Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 2014
B. Abella, W. Berger, M. Blaiss, et al.
Annals of emergency medicine, 2020
Yun-Hsia Hsiao, Charles Chen, T. Willemse
Journal of Veterinary Science, 2016
M. J. Noonan, G. D. Raphael, A. Nayak, et al.
Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 2003
Michel Gillard, Christy Van Der Perren, Nicole Moguilevsky, et al.
Molecular Pharmacology, 2002
Sources: aggregated from Europe PMC (EMBL-EBI), OpenAlex, Crossref, PubMed and other open scholarly databases. Retracted articles are excluded. Study information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Pharmacology and chemical data from DrugBank
Key facts
Drug status
Approved
Major interactions
1 found
Half-life
8.3 hours
Mechanism
Cetirizine, a metabolite of hydroxyzine, is an antihistamine drug.
Food interactions
2 warnings
Human targets
1 target
Data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Pharmacokinetics at a glance
Absorption
1 hour
Half-life
8.3 hours
Protein binding
93%
Volume of distribution
0.19 L/kg
[A175063]
Metabolism
70%
Elimination
70 – 85%
[A175051]
Between 70 – 85% of an orally administered dose can be found in the urine and 10 – 13% in the feces .
[A175051]
…
Clearance
53 mL/min
Cetirizine…
Pharmacokinetic data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
One of the most common uses for this drug is for a condition called allergic rhinitis. The prevalence of allergic rhinitis in the United States is about 15% according to physician diagnoses, and up to 30%, according to self-reported nasal symptoms. Allergic rhinitis is associated with multiple missed or unproductive days at work and school, problems with sleep, and other difficulties with day to day activities for many individuals [A175057]. Furthermore, some antihistamine agents that are used to treat this condition cause undesirable, sedating effects [A175060].
Cetirizine is one of the first second-generation H1 antihistamines (SGAHs) formulated to selectively inhibit the H1 receptor without sedating effects [A175054].
Perennial allergic rhinitis: This drug is indicated for the relief of symptoms associated with perennial allergic rhinitis due to allergens including dust mites, animal dander, and molds in adults and children 6 months of age and older. Symptoms treated effectively include sneezing, rhinorrhea, postnasal discharge, nasal pruritus, ocular pruritus, and tearing [FDA label].
Chronic urticaria: Cetirizine is indicated for the treatment of the uncomplicated skin manifestations of chronic idiopathic urticaria in adults and children 6 months of age and older.
It markedly reduces the occurrence, severity, and duration of hives and significantly reduces pruritus [FDA label].
Known interactions with other medicines. Always consult a healthcare professional.
Showing 50 of 1622 interactions
Carcinogenesis and mutagenesis: In a 2-year carcinogenicity study in rats, cetirizine was not shown to be carcinogenic at dietary doses up to 20 mg/kg (approximately 15 times the maximum recommended daily oral dose in adults). In a 2-year carcinogenicity study in mice, cetirizine administration lead to an incidence of benign liver tumors in males at a dietary dose of 16 mg/kg (approximately 6 times the maximum recommended daily oral dose in adults). The clinical significance of these findings during long-term use of cetirizine is unknown at this time [FDA label].
Cetirizine was not mutagenic in the Ames test, and not clastogenic in the human lymphocyte assay, the mouse lymphoma assay, and in vivo micronucleus test in rats [FDA label].
Impairment of fertility
In a fertility and reproduction study in mice, cetirizine did not negatively impact fertility at an oral dose of 64 mg/kg (approximately 25 times the maximum recommended daily oral dose in adults) [FDA label].
Pregnancy Category B:
In mice, rats, and rabbits, cetirizine was not teratogenic at oral doses up to 96, 225, and 135 mg/kg, respectively (approximately 40, 180 and 220 times the maximum recommended daily oral dose in adults).
There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. Because animal studies are not always predictive of human response, cetirizine should be used in pregnancy only if clearly needed [FDA label].
Use in breastfeeding/nursing
Cetirizine has been reported to be excreted in human breast milk. The use of cetirizine in nursing mothers is not recommended [FDA label].
Cetirizine, the active metabolite of the piperazine H1-receptor antagonist hydroxyzine, minimizes or eliminates the symptoms of chronic idiopathic urticaria, perennial allergic rhinitis, seasonal allergic rhinitis, allergic asthma, physical urticaria, and atopic dermatitis.
The clinical efficacy of cetirizine for allergic respiratory diseases has been well established in numerous trials [FDA label].
Effects on urticaria/anti-inflammatory effects
It has anti-inflammatory properties that may play a role in asthma management [A175051]. There is evidence that cetirizine improves symptoms of urticaria. Marked clinical inhibition of a wheal and flare response occurs in infants, children as well as adults within 20 minutes of one oral dose and lasts for 24 h [A175051]. Concomitant use of cetirizine reduces the duration and dose of topical anti-inflammatory formulas used for the treatment of atopic dermatitis [A175051].
How the body processes this drug — absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination
Effect of food on absorption
Food had no effect on cetirizine exposure (AUC), however, Tmax was delayed by 1.7 hours and Cmax was decreased by 23% in the fed state [FDA label].
[A175063]
This prevents potential interactions of cetirizine with drugs interacting with hepatic cytochrome enzymes .
[A175051]
Cetirizine is metabolized partially by oxidative O-dealkylation to a metabolite with insignificant antihistaminic activity. The enzyme or enzymes responsible for this step in cetirizine metabolism have not yet been identified [FDA label].
[A175051]
Between 70 – 85% of an orally administered dose can be found in the urine and 10 – 13% in the feces .
[A175051]
Cetirizine is mainly eliminated by the kidneys [A175051], [FDA label]. Dose adjustment is required for patients with moderate to severe renal impairment and in patients on hemodialysis [FDA label].
Proteins and enzymes this drug interacts with in the body
PMID:33828102 PMID:8280179
Through the H1 receptor, histamine mediates the contraction of smooth muscles and increases capillary permeability due to contraction of terminal venules. Also mediates neurotransmission in the central nervous system and thereby regulates circadian rhythms, emotional and locomotor activities as well as cognitive functions (By similarity)
Proteins that transport this drug across cell membranes
PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:8898203 PMID:9038218 PMID:35507548
Catalyzes the flop of phospholipids from the cytoplasmic to the exoplasmic leaflet of the apical membrane. Participates mainly to the flop of phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, beta-D-glucosylceramides and sphingomyelins .
PMID:8898203
Energy-dependent efflux pump responsible for decreased drug accumulation in multidrug-resistant cells PMID:2897240 PMID:35970996 PMID:9038218
Involved compounds
ATC S01GX12
ATC R06AE07
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Show
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Linked compound data from DrugBank Open Data (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Cetirizine
Additional database identifiers
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
7942
ChemSpider
2577
BindingDB
22890
Guide to Pharmacology
1222
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:5182
GenAtlas
HRH1
GeneCards
HRH1
GenBank Gene Database
Z34897
GenBank Protein Database
510296
Guide to Pharmacology
262
UniProt Accession
HRH1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:40
GenAtlas
ABCB1
GeneCards
ABCB1
GenBank Gene Database
M14758
GenBank Protein Database
307180
Guide to Pharmacology
768
UniProt Accession
MDR1_HUMAN
DrugBank citations
If you use DrugBank data in your research, please cite:
- DrugBank 6.02024Recommended citationKnox C., Wilson M., Klinger C.M., et alDrugBank 6.0: the DrugBank Knowledgebase for 2024Nucleic Acids Res. 2024 Jan 552(D1):D1265-D1275
- DrugBank 5.02018Wishart D.S., Feunang Y.D., Guo A.C., et alDrugBank 5.0: a major update to the DrugBank database for 2018Nucleic Acids Res. 2017 Nov 846(D1):D1074-D1082
- DrugBank 4.02014Law V., Knox C., Djoumbou Y., et alDrugBank 4.0: shedding new light on drug metabolismNucleic Acids Res. 2014 Jan 142(1):D1091-7
- DrugBank 3.02011Knox C., Law V., Jewison T., et alDrugBank 3.0: a comprehensive resource for 'omics' research on drugsNucleic Acids Res. 2011 Jan39(Database issue):D1035-41
- DrugBank 2.02008Wishart D.S., Knox C., Guo A.C., et alDrugBank: a knowledgebase for drugs, drug actions and drug targets.Nucleic Acids Research2008 Jan36(Database issue):D901-6
- DrugBank 1.02006Wishart D.S., Knox C., Guo A.C., et alDrugBank: a comprehensive resource for in silico drug discovery and exploration.Nucleic Acids Research2006 Jan 134(Database issue):D668-72