Can Straterra cause nose bleeds

Answer 1

I am a 23 year old female. I used to have heavy nosebleeds almost daily as a pre-teen, but they stopped completely by the time I was 12. I've been on 40mg of Strattera daily for four months and experienced my first nosebleed in over 10 years about two weeks ago. I've noticed that Strattera leaves my nose and sinuses feeling really dry. In fact, Strattera doubled as a cold medicine for me when I was sick last month. It completely knocked out my sinus drainage and runny nose.

My son is 12 and has been on strattera since mid February 2003. He has also experienced frequent and often heavy nosebleeds within the last 9 months, at one point I had to take him to the emergency room because I could not get it stopped. I called Ely-Lilly to see if they had any info. There clinical studies show a slight increase in both systolic and distolyc blood pressure but nothing about bleeding disorders. I was beginning to think he may be an isolated case but I happened upon this while I was researching my son's nosebleeds. I found in other websites that vitamin K deficiency can also cause nosebleeds. I wonder if the nosebleeds are a side effect or if the Strattera could be causing a vitamin K deficiency.

I recently started taking Strattera and coincidently am struggling with painful/dry tissue inside my nose. I can't even breath through my nose without stinging that is severe enough that my eyes water. A bloody nose can't be far behind. It's definitely not Allergies, Strattera is the only thing that's has been added to the equation. If I find anything out I'll add it here and would appreciate any additional thoughts.

contact Lilly or the FDA and report these effects. It is no coincidence that you all are experiencing the same problems.

I have been taking 60mg for 2 weeks and my nose is numb, dry, stinging and bleeding. My doctor reduced my dose to 40mg and I have not noticed any change in symptoms.

My son has been on 40mg of Staterra for 1 year. Lately he has experienced nose bleeds quite frequently. He has never had them before, so I'm sure that the drug has something to do with it. It is something to keep an eye on. Lilly is not going to tell people about all side effects, it is too new of a drug.

This is a great question. My daughter has been on Strattera for about a year now, 25mg. and she has had many nose bleeds. So much that I took her to the doctor out of concern. He thought it was due to the winter weather but after reading some of these postings,I am convinced that Straterra is the link for these bleeds. I had a feeling that the drug was the cause but could not find anything that noted "nosebleeds" as a side effect. I hope that more people will report this to Lily and their physicians so that maybe they will do some research and eventually list it as a side effect, or perhaps that Straterra may cause some sort of Vitamin K deficiency.

Our son is 5 years old and has taken Strattera for about 3 weeks and ,yes, the nosebleeds have begun to occure on a regular basis. I must say it has worked very well to control his behavior problems but it is definitely the source of the nosebleeds. He never had them before.

My 15yr old son started taking Stratera in 2/04. He's had nose bleeds off and on most of his life, but since February, they have gotten really bad. Last night he even had a giant blood clot come out of his nose, which is why I'm on the internet today reading about nose bleeds. He's even had up to 3 nose bleeds in one day. A recent blood test also showed that he is now slightly enemic.

Currently I am answering this question with a tissue shoved up my nose to try to stop the bleeding. I've had nosebleeds before, but it's been at least a year since the last one. I started out 3 weeks ago taking 25mg of Strattera for a week and tomorrow is the last day of 2 weeks taking 40mg. I will report this to my physician and Lilly.

My 8 year old son started taking Strattera less than 2 months ago and has had a nose bleed every day this week. After reading this, I am stopping the Strattera immediately and getting him back on the Concerta next week.

i never thought i would stumble across this topic. ive been taking strattera for a month now and i have experienceed an increase in nose bleeds, howeveer i didnt put the two together i figured it was just from being outside in the dry air. now that im not the only one it makes me wonder what else that is happeneing is a side effect.

My nephew has been on straterra for 1 week and has had nose bleeds 3 days in a row. Seeing all these entries on here makes me sure that there is a link. All of us need to pettion the FDA to make Eli-Lilly include this information on the label of straterra.

My 7yr old son has been on Straterra for a month and half now, for ADHD. He's up to 40mg/day now, but we're still not quite there yet. Compared to previous medications, I have been getting very optimistic with Strattera. My son is starting to eat again, and he's controllable in the morning and evening now, whereas the previous meds left him waiting every morning to start taking affect. This morning I dropped him off at school and suddenly realized he had had a brief nosebleed in the car on the way. I came home and immediately checked the web, and found this site. When I was young I had chronic nosebleeds, on no medication. After a few months they had to cauterize a blood vessel in my nose to stop the bleeds. The information that came with my sons Strattera did say that it may cause constipation, so perhaps it is causing his body to become a little more dehydrated than usual. I certainly will be checking this out with his doctor, but I remain hopefull that perhaps this is also something that my son my have been predisposed to. I think the fact that my son "Bounces" around so much while getting dressed for school may have something to do with elevated blood pressure as well. The bottom line is, I'd much rather combat a nosebleed then have our lives go back to the chaos that existed before he started on Strattera. I'm not trying to minimise anyones concerns, as it does look like nosebleeds may be an undisclosed symptom of the medication, but for me I'd be very happy if that is the worst symptom I'm going to have to deal with.

Answer 2

in clinical studies straterra has not been found to cause brusing.  
My advice is to talk to your local pharmacist. Some of your other medications may cause thinning of your blood and I know that will cause bruising.  
My daughter has been taking Straterra for about two weeks and I have also noticed some bruising. Mostly on her legs. They're small between dime and nickel sized, but I am worried about them. They don't seem to hurt her, but they are an eye sore!  
My son has been on Straterra for 1 month and within the past 2 weeks he has popped up with bruises on his legs and some on his arms, Also my cousin has been on Straterra since Febuary 2004 and with the first month of her being on it she got bruises! Her parents had her blood tested for anemia and eveything else that could cause brusing and everything came out negitive, so between my son and my cousin, both never having brusing this bad before I believe STRONGLY that it is in the medicine somehow.. I have heard it could be a protein thing because with the medicine you have to have extra protein but it could be causing too much protein in the blood which will also cause bruising..  
My child started taking Strattera in September of 2004. It seemed to work well for him in terms of the ADHD, but we noticed some side effects. Among these were a lack of appetite leading to significant weight loss, occasional rapid heartbeat and bruising on his legs. We did not immediately associate the bruising with the Strattera. We thought it was just the result of overzealous behavior on the playground. However...
During the late fall of 2004 we were advised that he needed to have a major operation involving his spinal cord. The need was not immediate and so it was scheduled for July 7, 2005. About a week prior to the surgery, a blood test was done. The test revealed that his blood was "thin". It did not coagulate in the correct amount of time. I don't recall the name of the test, but we were told his score was 47, when it should have been 25 - 35. This rendered him unfit for the operation. It also explained the bruises on his legs.
I smelled a rat right away and the rat's name was Strattera. Upon returning home from work on the day my wife told me this, I went on the internet looking for people with the same type of problem. I found a very similar situation that also pointed to Strattera at the following link:
http://www.adhdnews.com/testforum/test3377.htm
The dose of Strattera he took on that day was his last. I stopped the medication immediately. We consulted a hematologist who advised us that she had seen numerous children on ADD drugs (not necessarily Strattera) with a similar problem. She told us that we had done the right thing by stoppping the medicine, as this is what she would have told us to do anyway. A full blood workup was ordered for 2 weeks later (to test for Von Willebrand's disease, among other things). By the time the test was done, his blood had returned to normal and on July 28, the operation was able to go forward (to a successful outcome).
The moral of the story is that despite claims to the contrary, Srattera causes blood thinning. What else it will do in the long run is anybody's guess. There are no 20 year studies for a drug that has only been around for 7 years.

Answer 3

My son has been off Straterra for 1 week. His rash is subsiding ever so slowly. The spots that he scratched are infected, but I am putting a cream(antibiotic) on them. I may try epsom salt compresses or put him in a pool or hot tub and let the chlorine/bromine help to dry them up. No more Straterra for him. He is a happier kid now and he eats and sleeps better! IMHO the Straterra was a major factor with the rash, the upset stomach, and the lack of sleep. Good Luck!

Any rash brought on by ANY medications can be a sign of Stephens Johnson syndrome. It is when your body reacts to foreign chemicals and your body basically burns itself up. This is a LIFE THREATENING disease. Most doctors NEVER watch for this or think about it. Anytime you start a new medication, especially "psych" meds you have to watch for symptoms of a rash. If you develop any symptoms DISCONTINUE THE MEDICATION IMMEDIATELY! Most of the time fatalities occur because doctors don't link the rashes with the medications, meanwhile you are feeding the fire. I was alerted to this when I started taking Lamictal. My psych kept asking me to tell him if any signs of a rash developed, to stop the medication and call him immediately. He didn't tell me why, but an internet search revealed the reason. Go to Stephens Johnson Syndrome and check it out. Don't mess around. There are pictures there and people who get this look like they have been dropped in a deep fryer. It is scary!

Thank you so much for informing us here about Stevens Johnson and its website. I have never heard of it in my 43 years of living and I research EVERY drug I am prescribed by a doctor very thoroughly - (one would think I would have run across such important information about possible drug reaction/allergy.) This should be commonly given out by doctors - not to scare but to educate! Thanks again.

After being on Straterra for 3 days I develeoped a minor rash that can best be described as a red dry rash that burned when I touched it (like poison ivy). I kept an eye on it and it did get worse before it got better starting on my face and working down to my legs but by the 5th day of Straterra the rash was completely gone. I've had such positive results from Straterra with the ADHD didn't want to stop and I'm so glad I didn't. The rash was a very fast and minor side effect and it went away before I could even call my doctor to question it. I've been on it almost 2 weeks now and there is no sign of a rash.

I am so glad that I found this site in searching for an answer to wether or not Strattera can cause a rash of any sorts. My 14 years old son just switched from Concerta to Strattera two weeks ago and he has developed this funny looking rash. It started between his fingers and moved to his face, legs, and eye. It looks red with tiny little bumps the size of a pin head. Does this sound familiar to anyone? He said that it itches and it bothers him. Help.

i am on my 8th day of strattera.i started getting a rash on my face & neck yesterday. i hope it goes away.

My son was on Straterra for almost 2 months with no problems. The Dr. increased his meds. a little to help out more. After they were increaced he started breaking out in a rash. We stopped the meds. for a week. After the rash cleared up we started him back on the meds. He started with the rash all over again. Now he is off Straterra and on Ritalin. He is breaking out with it too afer a weeks time. I'm lost on what to do. Is he going to be like this with all these meds? He really needs something. Anyone have any ideas?

I was taking 40mg twice a day and increased to 60mg twice a day. That's when I noticed that my skin was extra-sensitive. After swimming in chlorine I would break out in a rash all over. Went back to 40mg...no problem!!

Strattera has been so effective in helping my A.D.D. that at age 52 it was like being found stranded on confusion island after 45 years. You know what I'm talking about.I have been using Strattera for about 30 days. After the first two weeks of 40 mgs a day my doctor increased it to 80 mgs. The rash started about a week ago.Mostly my torso and legs.I stopped the Strattera a couple of days ago and I'm hoping the rash goes away soon, then I can try something else. I hope I find something as effective without the side effects if that is what this is.Frank