Dextromethorphan Polistirex: uses, dosing, side effects & brands
Dextromethorphan Polistirex is a medicine sold in the U.S. under one brand, for cough. Below: what the FDA label says, every product that contains it, what the pills look like, and its recall record.
Key facts
- Treats
- Cough
- Available as
- Suspension, extended release
- Sold as
- Delsym
- Prescription?
- Over the counter
- Generic available?
- Not in our catalog
How dextromethorphan polistirex is dosed
From the FDA label for Delsym (application NDA018658). Other dextromethorphan polistirex products — different forms, different strengths — are dosed differently. Follow the label for the one you were prescribed.
Directions shake bottle well before use measure only with dosing cup provided do not use dosing cup with other products dose as follows or as directed by a doctor mL = milliliter adults and children 12 years of age and over 10 mL every 12 hours, not to exceed 20 mL in 24 hours children 6 to under 12 years of age 5 mL every 12 hours, not to exceed 10 mL in 24 hours children 4 to under 6 years of age 2.5 mL every 12 hours, not to exceed 5 mL in 24 hours children under 4 years of age do not use
Every dextromethorphan polistirex 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: Delsym.
How long dextromethorphan polistirex keeps
No dextromethorphan polistirex label we read sets a separate limit for after opening, but they do specify how it must be stored — and the stability behind any date assumes those conditions.
Does dextromethorphan polistirex expire? The in-use limits and storage rules from its labelsWhat people report to the FDA about dextromethorphan polistirex
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) collects reports from patients and clinicians. It holds 873 reports naming dextromethorphan polistirex, and the FDA flagged 2% 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:
- diarrhoea84 reports
- dizziness55 reports
- hypersensitivity40 reports
- nausea35 reports
- somnolence34 reports
- drug effect incomplete33 reports
- feeling abnormal25 reports
- inappropriate schedule of drug administration22 reports
Read these as a signal, not a rate. A report does not mean dextromethorphan polistirex 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
Frequently asked questions
What is dextromethorphan polistirex?
Uses temporarily relieves cough due to minor throat and bronchial irritation as may occur with the common cold or inhaled irritants the impulse to cough to help you get to sleep
Can you take dextromethorphan polistirex 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 dextromethorphan polistirex 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 dextromethorphan polistirex come in?
Across the brands we track, dextromethorphan polistirex is currently marketed as suspension, extended release, 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 dextromethorphan polistirex?
We do not currently list a generic-labelled dextromethorphan polistirex 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). Dextromethorphan Polistirex: uses, dosing, side effects & brands. https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/dextromethorphan-polistirex
- MLA
- “Dextromethorphan Polistirex: uses, dosing, side effects & brands.” pharmaranks, 24 July 2026, https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/dextromethorphan-polistirex.
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 dextromethorphan polistirex on DailyMed (NIH) ↗.