Triazolam Side Effects

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com. Last updated on Oct 30, 2024.

Applies to triazolam: oral tablet.

Precautions

It is very important that your doctor check your progress at regular visits to make sure this medicine is working properly and to check for any unwanted effects.

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant. Using this medicine during the later pregnancy may cause problems in your newborn baby (eg, sedation or withdrawal symptoms). Tell your doctor right away if your baby has an abnormal sleep pattern, diarrhea, feeding problems, a high-pitched cry, irritability, low muscle tone, restlessness, shakiness or tremors, sluggishness, trouble breathing, weight loss, vomiting, or fails to gain weight. If you think you have become pregnant while using the medicine, tell your doctor right away.

If your condition does not improve within 7 to 10 days, or if it becomes worse, check with your doctor.

Do not take itraconazole (Sporanox®), ketoconazole (Nizoral®), nefazodone (Serzone®), or certain HIV medicines (eg, indinavir, nelfinavir, lopinavir, ritonavir, saquinavir, Kaletra®, Norvir®) while you are using this medicine. Using these medicines together with triazolam may increase the chance of serious side effects.

Triazolam may cause serious allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis and angioedema, which can be life-threatening and require immediate medical attention. Call your doctor right away if you have itching, hives, hoarseness, nausea or vomiting, trouble breathing, trouble swallowing, or any swelling of your hands, face, mouth or throat while you are using this medicine.

This medicine may be habit-forming. If you feel that the medicine is not working as well, do not use more than your prescribed dose. Call your doctor for instructions.

This medicine may cause you to do things while you are still asleep that you may not remember the next morning. It is possible you could drive a car, sleepwalk, have sex, make phone calls, or prepare and eat food while you are asleep or not fully awake. Tell your doctor right away if you learn that any of these has happened.

This medicine will add to the effects of alcohol and other central nervous system (CNS) depressants. CNS depressants are medicines that slow down the nervous system, which may cause drowsiness or make you less alert. Some examples of CNS depressants are antihistamines or medicine for hay fever, allergies, or colds, sedatives, tranquilizers, or sleeping medicine, prescription pain medicine or narcotics, barbiturates (used for seizures), muscle relaxants, or anesthetics (numbing medicines), including some dental anesthetics. This effect may last for a few days after you Stop taking triazolam. Check with your doctor before taking any of the above while you are using this medicine.

This medicine may cause some people, especially older persons, to become drowsy, dizzy, or less alert than they are normally, which may lead to falls. Even though triazolam is taken at bedtime, it may cause some people to feel drowsy or less alert the next morning. Do not drive or do anything else that could be dangerous until you know how this medicine affects you.

Do not stop using this medicine without checking first with your doctor. Your doctor may want you to gradually reduce the amount you are using before stopping it completely. This may help prevent a worsening of your condition and reduce the possibility of withdrawal symptoms, including seizures, stomach or muscle cramps, sweating, tremors, vomiting, or unusual behavior.

If you develop any unusual and strange thoughts or behavior while you are using triazolam, be sure to discuss it with your doctor. Some changes that have occurred in people using this medicine are like those seen in people who drink alcohol and then act in a manner that is not normal. Other changes may be more unusual and extreme, such as confusion, worsening of depression, hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or feeling things that are not there), suicidal thoughts, and unusual excitement, nervousness, or irritability.

Symptoms of an overdose include: change in consciousness, changes in patterns and rhythms of speech, difficult or trouble breathing, difficulty with coordination, hallucinations, irregular, fast or slow, or shallow breathing, loss of consciousness, loss of strength or energy, mood or mental changes, muscle pain or weakness, nightmares, pale or blue lips, fingernails, or skin, sleepiness or unusual drowsiness, shakiness and unsteady walk, slurred speech, trouble in speaking, trouble sleeping, unsteadiness, trembling, or other problems with muscle control or coordination, unusual drowsiness, dullness, tiredness, weakness or feeling of sluggishness, unusual excitement, nervousness, restlessness, or irritability, or unusual weak feeling. Call your doctor right away if you notice these symptoms.

Do not take other medicines unless they have been discussed with your doctor. This includes prescription or nonprescription (over-the-counter [OTC]) medicines and herbal or vitamin supplements.

Common side effects of triazolam

Some side effects of triazolam may occur that usually do not need medical attention. These side effects may go away during treatment as your body adjusts to the medicine. Also, your health care professional may be able to tell you about ways to prevent or reduce some of these side effects.

Check with your health care professional if any of the following side effects continue or are bothersome or if you have any questions about them:

Serious side effects of triazolam

Along with its needed effects, triazolam may cause some unwanted effects. Although not all of these side effects may occur, if they do occur they may need medical attention.

Check with your doctor immediately if any of the following side effects occur while taking triazolam:

Get emergency help immediately if any of the following symptoms of overdose occur while taking triazolam:

Symptoms of overdose

• agitation
• change in consciousness
• changes in patterns and rhythms of speech
• confusion
• irregular, fast or slow, or shallow breathing
• loss of consciousness
• loss of strength or energy
• nightmares
• mood or mental changes
• pale or blue lips, fingernails, or skin
• shakiness and unsteady walk
• slurred speech
• talkativeness
• trouble speaking
• unsteadiness, trembling, or other problems with muscle control or coordination
• unusual drowsiness, dullness, tiredness, weakness, or feeling of sluggishness
• unusual excitement, nervousness, restlessness, or irritability

For healthcare professionals

Applies to triazolam: oral tablet.

General adverse events

The most commonly reported side effects included drowsiness/sedation, dizziness/lightheadedness, headache, and ataxia.^[Ref]

Nervous system

• Very common (10% or more): Sedation (up to 19.4%), drowsiness (up to 14%)
• Common (1% to 10%): Anterograde amnesia with appropriate/inappropriate behavior, ataxia, concentration difficulty, coordination disorders/impaired coordination, dizziness, headache, impaired equilibrium, lethargy, lightheadedness, memory impairment
• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Dysesthesia, paresthesia, taste alterations
• Frequency not reported: Amnestic symptoms, clouding of consciousness/altered state of consciousness, dysarthria, dystonia, grogginess, slurred speech, somnambulism, somnolence, syncope^[Ref]

Complex behaviors, such as "sleep-driving", other behaviors such as preparing and eating food, making phone calls, or having sex, with amnesia for these events, have been reported at therapeutic doses with this medicine.^[Ref]

Genitourinary

• Very common (10% or more): WBC/high power field (HPF) in urinalysis (up to 11.3%)
• Common (1% to 10%): Albuminuria, red blood cells/HPF in urinalysis
• Frequency not reported: Bladder trouble, incontinence, menstrual irregularities, urinary retention^[Ref]

Hematologic

• Very common (10% or more): Low eosinophil count (up to 10.2%)
• Common (1% to 10%): High eosinophil count, low monocyte count, low/high basophil count, low/high lymphocyte count, low/high neutrophil count, low/high WBC count

Metabolic

• Common (1% to 10%): High bilirubin, increased alkaline phosphatase, low/high creatinine
• Frequency not reported: Anorexia^[Ref]

Psychiatric

• Common (1% to 10%): Anxiety, nervousness
• Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Confusional states, depression, euphoria
• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Dreaming, insomnia, nightmares
• Frequency not reported: Abnormal behavior, abnormal dreams, abuse, acute rage, addiction, aggressiveness/aggression, agitation, agitational state, bizarre behavior, changes in libido, delusions, depersonalization, derealization, disorientation, disorientation in time/place, excitation, hallucinations, inappropriate behavior, irritability, libido disorder, mania, other adverse behavioral effects, paranoia, restlessness, sleep disorder/sleep disturbances, stimulation^[Ref]

Rebound insomnia (a worsening of sleep following cessation of therapy) has been observed and has sometimes been reported to occur in association with increased daytime anxiety.

Withdrawal symptoms have included agitation, restlessness, anxiety, insomnia, psychosis, delirium, convulsions, tremor, abdominal cramps, blurred vision, vomiting, and sweating.

Worsening of insomnia, depression, or the emergence of new thinking or behavior abnormalities, including suicidal thinking, have emerged during treatment with sedative-hypnotic drugs, including this drug. The frequency and extent to which this drug is associated with adverse behavioral effects is controversial.

One study based on the postmarketing surveillance Spontaneous Reporting System of the FDA has suggested that adverse behavioral reactions have been reported 22 to 99 times more frequently in association with triazolam therapy than with temazepam therapy for insomnia. An increased frequency of adverse behavioral effects was noted to occur most frequently in elderly patients and at higher doses of this drug. The methodology of this study, however, has been questioned on the grounds that spontaneous reports of adverse effects do not necessarily correlate with the incidence of adverse effects.

Other studies and reports have concluded that little evidence exists to support the contention that this drug is associated with a greater risk of adverse behavioral effects than other benzodiazepines (including temazepam).^[Ref]

Gastrointestinal

• Common (1% to 10%): Nausea, vomiting
• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Constipation, diarrhea, dry mouth
• Frequency not reported: Abdominal distress, burning tongue, glossitis, stomatitis, tongue discomfort^[Ref]

Other

• Common (1% to 10%): Tiredness
• Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Pain
• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Tinnitus, weakness
• Frequency not reported: Falling, fatigue, paradoxical reactions^[Ref]

Hepatic

• Common (1% to 10%): High AST levels
• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Death (from hepatic failure)
• Frequency not reported: Jaundice^[Ref]

Death from hepatic failure has been reported in a patient also receiving diuretic drugs.^[Ref]

Dermatologic

• Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Pruritus, skin rash
• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Dermatitis^[Ref]

Cardiovascular

• Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Palpitations, tachycardia
• Frequency not reported: Chest pain^[Ref]

Respiratory

• Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Hiccups
• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Congestion^[Ref]

One study of patients with obstructive sleep apnea has suggested that this drug may increase the maximum apnea duration and lower the minimum oxygen saturation of apneic patients.^[Ref]

Musculoskeletal

• Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Cramps
• Frequency not reported: Aching limbs, backache, increased muscle spasticity^[Ref]

Ocular

• Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Visual disturbances
• Frequency not reported: Blepharitis^[Ref]

Hypersensitivity

• Rare (0.01% to 0.1%): Allergy
• Postmarketing reports: Anaphylactic shock, anaphylactoid reaction, allergic edema, angioneurotic edema, hypersensitivity reaction^[Ref]

See also:

Frequently asked questions

• What are the strongest sleeping pills?

Further information

Triazolam side effects can vary depending on the individual. Always consult your healthcare provider to ensure the information displayed on this page applies to your personal circumstances.

Note: Medication side effects may be underreported. If you are experiencing side effects that are not listed, submit a report to the FDA by following this guide.

Medical Disclaimer