Dalteparin: uses, dosing, side effects & brands

Dalteparin is a medicine sold in the U.S. under one brand, for unstable angina, myocardial infarction and postoperative complications. Below: what the FDA label says, every product that contains it, what the pills look like, and its recall record.

By the pharmaranks editorial teamReviewed against the FDA (openFDA label, NDC Directory & Enforcement) sourcesUpdated Jul 24, 2026How we research

Key facts

Treats: Unstable Angina, Myocardial Infarction and Postoperative Complications
Available as: Injectable
Sold as: Fragmin
Prescription?: Prescription only
Generic available?: Not in our catalog
Boxed warning: Boxed warning

How dalteparin is dosed

From the FDA label for Fragmin (application NDA020287). Other dalteparin products — different forms, different strengths — are dosed differently. Follow the label for the one you were prescribed.

Indication Dosing Regimen Unstable angina and non-Q-wave MI 120 units/kg subcutaneous every 12 hours (with aspirin) ( 2.1 ) DVT prophylaxis in abdominal surgery 2,500 units subcutaneous once daily or 5,000 units subcutaneous once daily or 2,500 units subcutaneous followed by 2,500 units subcutaneous 12 hours later and then 5,000 units subcutaneous once daily ( 2.2 ) DVT prophylaxis in hip replacement surgery Postoperative start – 2,500 units subcutaneous 4 hours to 8 hours after surgery, then 5,000 units subcutaneous once daily, or Preoperative start – day of surgery 2,500 units subcutaneous 2 hours before surgery followed by 2,500 units subcutaneous 4 hours to 8 hours after surgery, then 5,000 units subcutaneous once daily ( 2.2 ) Preoperative start – Evening Before Surgery 5,000 units subcutaneous followed by 5,000 units subcutaneous 4 hours to 8 hours after surgery ( 2.2 ) DVT prophylaxis in medical patients 5,000 units subcutaneous once daily ( 2.2 ) Extended treatment of VTE in adult patients with cancer Month 1: 200 units/kg subcutaneous once daily ( 2.3 ) Months 2 to 6: 150 units/kg subcutaneous once daily ( 2.3 ) Treatment of VTE in pediatric patients (see Table 5 ) ( 2.4 ) Age Group Starting Dose Birth (gestational age at least 35 weeks) to less than 2 Years 150 units/kg twice daily 2 Years to less than 8 Years 125 units/kg twice daily 8 Years to less than 17 Years…

Dalteparin side effects

The following clinically significant adverse reactions are described in more detail in other sections of the prescribing information . • Risk of Hemorrhage including Spinal/Epidural Hematomas [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1) ] • Thrombocytopenia [see Warnings and Precautions (5.2) ] • Benzyl Alcohol Preservative Risk to Premature Infants [see Warnings and Precautions (5.3) ] Most common adverse reactions (>1%) are: bleeding (including hemorrhage), thrombocytopenia (Type I), hematoma at the injection site, pain at the injection site, transient elevation of transaminases ( 6 ) To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Pfizer Inc. at 1-800-438-1985 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch . 6.1 Clinical Trials Experience Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials of a drug cannot be directly compared to rates in the clinical trials of another drug and may not accurately reflect the rates observed in practice. Hemorrhage The most commonly reported adverse reactions are hematoma at the injection site and hemorrhagic complications. The risk for bleeding varies with the indication and may increase with higher doses. Unstable Angina and Non-Q-Wave Myocardial Infarction Table 7 summarizes major bleeding reactions that occurred with FRAGMIN, heparin, and placebo in clinical trials of…

Who shouldn’t take dalteparin

FRAGMIN is contraindicated in: • Patients with active major bleeding. • Patients with a history of heparin induced thrombocytopenia or heparin induced thrombocytopenia with thrombosis. • Patients with prior hypersensitivity to dalteparin sodium (e.g., pruritis, rash, anaphylactic reactions) [see Adverse Reactions (6.1) ] . • Patients undergoing Epidural/Neuraxial anesthesia, do not administer FRAGMIN [see Boxed Warning and Warnings and Precautions (5.1) ] ; o As a treatment for unstable angina and non-Q-wave MI. o For prolonged VTE prophylaxis. • Patients with prior hypersensitivity to heparin or pork products. • Active major bleeding ( 4 ) • History of heparin induced thrombocytopenia or heparin induced thrombocytopenia with thrombosis ( 4 ) • Hypersensitivity to dalteparin sodium ( 4 , 6.1 ) • In patients undergoing Epidural/Neuraxial anesthesia, do not administer FRAGMIN ( 5.1 ) o As a treatment for unstable angina and non-Q-wave MI o For prolonged VTE prophylaxis ( 4 ) • Hypersensitivity to heparin or pork products ( 4 )

Dalteparin drug interactions

The use of FRAGMIN in patients receiving oral anticoagulants, platelet inhibitors, and thrombolytic agents may increase the risk of bleeding [see Warnings and Precautions (5) ] . The use of FRAGMIN in patients receiving oral anticoagulants, platelet inhibitors, and thrombolytic agents may increase the risk of bleeding ( 7 )

Every dalteparin product we track (1)

Same active ingredient — different manufacturer, form, price and FDA recall record. That last one is what our independent score measures.

Only one: Fragmin.

Dalteparin and breastfeeding

From LactMed, the US National Library of Medicine’s Drugs and Lactation Database — quoted, not rewritten.

Because of the low levels of dalteparin in breastmilk and its large molecular weight of 2000 to 9000 daltons, amounts ingested by the infant are small and it would not be expected to be absorbed from breastmilk by the infant. No special precautions are required.

Full LactMed record for dalteparin: levels in milk, effects in breastfed infants, and the drugs it would consider instead

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, record revised November 15, 2024. LactMed states its information is not a substitute for professional judgement.

What people report to the FDA about dalteparin

The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) collects reports from patients and clinicians. It holds 2,938 reports naming dalteparin, and the FDA flagged 97% of those reports as serious. The effects reported most often — leaving out reports about overdose, misuse or the condition being treated, which dominate the raw list for common medicines:

nausea305 reports
vomiting268 reports
sepsis257 reports
abdominal pain249 reports
constipation237 reports
general physical health deterioration215 reports
ascites208 reports
dyspnoea208 reports

Read these as a signal, not a rate. A report does not mean dalteparin caused the effect — anyone can file one, and many describe people taking several medicines for several conditions. Crucially there is no denominator: FAERS does not record how many people took the drug, so these counts cannot be turned into “X% of patients” — a bigger number often just means a more widely used or more talked-about drug. Duplicates exist, and publicity drives reporting. For what is actually established, read the FDA label section above.

Source: openFDA drug/event (FAERS), retrieved July 25, 2026.

Related calculators

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Frequently asked questions

What is dalteparin?

Fragmin (Dalteparin Sodium) is a medication used to treat Unstable Angina, Myocardial Infarction, Postoperative Complications, Pulmonary Embolism.

Can you take dalteparin with other medicines?

It depends on the medicine. We check it against the FDA labels rather than guessing: our interaction checker searches each drug's own label for the other and quotes what it says, naming the section it came from. Run dalteparin against whatever else you take — and remember that a label not naming a drug is not the same as that combination being safe.

What forms does dalteparin come in?

Across the brands we track, dalteparin is currently marketed as injectable, per the FDA's National Drug Code Directory. Each form is dosed differently — follow the label for the exact product you were prescribed.

Is there a generic dalteparin?

We do not currently list a generic-labelled dalteparin product. That does not always mean none exists — it means none appears under a generic name in the FDA data we track. Ask your pharmacist.

Cite this page

APA: pharmaranks. (2026, July 24). Dalteparin: uses, dosing, side effects & brands. https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/dalteparin
MLA: “Dalteparin: uses, dosing, side effects & brands.” pharmaranks, 24 July 2026, https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/dalteparin.

We summarise public FDA and NIH sources — for a clinical claim, cite the primary source we link to as well.

Sources: FDA openFDA drug label, National Drug Code Directory, and Enforcement (recall) database. This page reproduces public FDA data and is not medical advice. Dosing is set by your prescriber.

Read the full FDA label for dalteparin on DailyMed (NIH) ↗ — including its boxed warning in full.