Intentional misuse after Maropitant (Cerenia) in cats

The FDA has received 167 reports of intentional misuse in cats after Maropitant. That is 4.3% of all reports for this medicine, compared with 0.5% across reports for all cat medicines, so it is reported unusually often with this medicine.

167Reports

73%Marked serious

16%Recovered

22%Died or euthanised

1 daysTypical onset

How soon it started

Same day

73 46%

1–2 days

27 17%

3–7 days

17 11%

1–4 weeks

20 13%

Over a month

21 13%

How the animals did

Recovered

26 16%

Still unwell when reported

92 55%

Died

17 10%

Euthanised

19 11%

Not known

13 7.8%

Problems reported at the same time

Loss of appetite

64 38%

Lethargy

47 28%

Didn't work as expected

38 23%

36 22%

35 21%

27 16%

26 16%

25 15%

Age of the animals

Under 1 year

1–3 years

4–7 years

8–11 years

12+ years

About this medicine

Maropitant prevents vomiting and motion sickness.

Products with this ingredient include Cerenia. The FDA hides brand names in its public data, so these reports cover every product with the same active ingredients.

Questions owners ask

Can Maropitant cause intentional misuse in cats?: 167 reports link the two, but a report alone does not prove the medicine was the cause: other illnesses, other medicines or coincidence can be involved. Your vet can judge it for your animal.
How soon after a dose was it reported?: In half of the reports with dates, it started within 1 day of the first dose.
What should I do?: Don't give another dose until you've spoken to your vet, and keep the packaging so you can tell them the product and dose. Your vet can also report it to the FDA (or you can, through the manufacturer or FDA form 1932a).

Intentional misuse with similar medicines

Intentional misuse after Mirtazapine (Mirataz) 37 reports · 2.0% of its reports

All reported side effects of Maropitant in cats · Medicines most reported with intentional misuse