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Side Effects of Zaleplon
There are a number of side effects with zaleplon that you should report immediately to your healthcare provider. These include, but are not limited to:
- Chest pain
- Anxiety or nervousness
- Suicidal thoughts (see Suicide Risk With Zaleplon)
- Confusion
- More outgoing or aggressive behavior than normal
- Strange behavior
- Depression (see Sonata and Depression)
- Hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or feeling things that are not really there)
- Signs of an allergic reaction, including unexplained rash, itching, hives, wheezing or trouble breathing, or unexplained swelling.
There are other zaleplon side effects that can occur. These side effects have occurred in very few people taking zaleplon. For these side effects, it is difficult to tell whether the side effect is caused by the zaleplon or something else.
Some of these rare but possible zaleplon side effects include, but are not limited to:
- Hangover effect
- High blood pressure (hypertension) or low blood pressure (hypotension)
- Weight gain (see Sonata and Weight Gain)
- Hair loss (see Sonata and Hair Loss)
- Erectile dysfunction (ED or impotence) (see Sonata and Impotence).
It is possible that you may experience some or none of the side effects discussed above. Unfortunately, there is no way for your healthcare provider to know beforehand if you will have side effects from a medicine that you have never tried. Therefore, make sure to let your healthcare provider know if you develop any side effects. Also, let your healthcare provider know if something "just does not seem right." While it may not be a zaleplon side effect, your healthcare provider will be able to diagnose and treat the problem.
Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD