Not all side effects are as likely as others, and some people will not experience any side effects at all. Some side effects are common and others are rare. Some are also more serious than others.

The terms ‘common’, ‘uncommon’ and ‘rare’ have a very specific meaning when used to describe side effects for medicines in official documents such as a consumer medicine information (CMI) leaflet or the product information (PI).

If you don’t understand how likely a side effect is, ask your health professional to explain using words or numbers that make sense to you.

Although this sort of information can give you an idea of how often side effects occur on average, it does not tell you how likely you are to experience a particular side effect. 

Your individual risk of a side effect depends on several factors including your other health issues, your age and the dose of medicine. Your health professional may be able to tell you how likely they think you are to experience a certain side effect.

When finding out about side effects, important questions to ask your health professional are:

• What are the possible side effects?
  
• How common are the side effects?
  
• Are there any serious side effects and how likely are these?
  
• Can I do anything to avoid or reduce the side effects?
  
• Will the side effect get better with time?
  
• What should I do if I am worried about a side effect?
  

Always discuss any side effects with your health professional. If there are side effects you are having trouble managing, there may be things your health professional can do to combat them, such as reduce the dose of your medicine or switch to another treatment.

When you are finding out about side effects, remember to weigh these up against the benefits of the medicine when you make any choices about treatment. 

One source of information about possible side effects is the consumer medicine information (CMI) that must be produced for all prescription (and some non-prescription) medicines.

The CMI describes common and important side effects that are known about from clinical trials and ongoing monitoring of medicines by health professionals. You may find it helpful to read the CMI and then discuss any concerns or questions with your health professional before you buy the medicine.

You can download a CMI from our Medicine Finder or you can ask your health professional for the CMI for your medicine.

Be aware that if you are considering a newly approved medicine, it is possible that side effects that are less common or only show up with ling term use may not have been reported yet.

Beware of unreliable information

Although you might be interested to hear about other people’s experiences with a medicine, remember that not everyone who takes the same medicine will have side effects, or have the same side effects. This is particularly important if you are searching online for experiences with medicines. Remember that many online discussions about medicines and side effects are unreliable. The best person to talk to is your health professional.

Read more in Finding good information about medicines.

Always discuss any side effects with your health professional. If there are side effects that you are having trouble managing, there may be things your health professional can do to combat them, such as reduce the dose of your medicine, or switch to another treatment.

• If you have concerns about your medicines arising from an overdose or suspected poisoning, call the Poisons Information Centre, 24 hours a day on 13 11 26. 
  
• For general emergencies call 000.
  
• If the side effect is not an emergency, there are a number of ways you can report it to the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). 
  

Advise your health professional

If you experience side effects that require a change of medicine or a reduction in dose, it is important for your health professional to update your health record with this information.

A health professional may report to the TGA any new or unusual medicine-related side effects they observe or that are reported to them by their patients . Reports to the TGA are confidential. Your personal information will remain confidential and your privacy will be maintained.

Call the Adverse Medicines Events (AME) Line on 1300 134 237

The AME Line is a service that encourages members of the public to report and discuss side effects that might be related to their medicine. Medicine-related side effects are reported to the TGA for assessment and contribute to national medicine safety efforts. Your personal information will remain confidential and your privacy will be maintained. 

The AME Line is available Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm AEST. It is not for emergencies.

Report side effects directly to the TGA

You can report suspected side effects directly to the TGA via their website.

Each report that the TGA receives is collected in a publicly accessible national database, the Database of Adverse Event Notifications (DAEN). This database includes adverse event reports about prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines and complementary medicines (vitamins, minerals, herbal or natural medicines). 

The information is regularly analysed so that any potential safety concerns can be investigated in detail. If the TGA identifies a new safety concern such as a new side effect, it can take action to address it and make sure that health professionals and the public are aware of it.