Prasugrel: uses, dosing, side effects & brands
Prasugrel is a p2y12 platelet inhibitor sold in the U.S. under one brand. Below: what the FDA label says, every product that contains it, what the pills look like, and its recall record.
Key facts
- Drug class
- P2y12 Platelet Inhibitor
- Available as
- Tablet
- Sold as
- Effient
- Prescription?
- Prescription only
- Generic available?
- Not in our catalog
- What the pharmacy pays
- about $9 for a 30-count supply — not your price
- Boxed warning
- Boxed warning
How prasugrel is dosed
From the FDA label for Effient (application NDA022307). Other prasugrel products — different forms, different strengths — are dosed differently. Follow the label for the one you were prescribed.
Initiate Effient treatment as a single 60 mg oral loading dose and then continue at 10 mg orally once daily. Patients taking Effient should also take aspirin (75 mg to 325 mg) daily [see Drug Interactions (7.4) and Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] . Effient may be administered with or without food [see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) and Clinical Studies (14) ] . Initiate treatment with a single 60 mg oral loading dose ( 2 ). Continue at 10 mg once daily with or without food. Consider 5 mg once daily for patients <60 kg ( 2 ). Patients should also take aspirin (75 mg to 325 mg) daily ( 2 ). Timing of Loading Dose In the clinical trial that established the efficacy and safety of Effient, the loading dose of Effient was not administered until coronary anatomy was established in UA/NSTEMI patients and in STEMI patients presenting more than 12 hours after symptom onset. In STEMI patients presenting within 12 hours of symptom onset, the loading dose of Effient was administered at the time of diagnosis, although most received Effient at the time of PCI [see Clinical Studies (14) ] . For the small fraction of patients that required urgent CABG after treatment with Effient, the risk of significant bleeding was substantial. Although it is generally recommended that antiplatelet therapy be administered promptly in the management of ACS because many cardiovascular events occur within hours of…
Prasugrel side effects
The following serious adverse reactions are also discussed elsewhere in the labeling: Bleeding [see Boxed Warning and Warnings and Precautions (5.1 , 5.2) ] Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura [see Warnings and Precautions (5.4) ] Hypersensitivity Including Angioedema [see Warnings and Precautions (5.5) ] Bleeding, including life-threatening and fatal bleeding, is the most commonly reported adverse reaction ( 6.1 ). To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Cosette Pharmaceuticals, Inc. at 1-800-922-1038 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch. 6.1 Clinical Trials Experience Safety in patients with ACS undergoing PCI was evaluated in a clopidogrel-controlled study, TRITON-TIMI 38, in which 6741 patients were treated with Effient (60 mg loading dose and 10 mg once daily) for a median of 14.5 months (5802 patients were treated for over 6 months; 4136 patients were treated for more than 1 year). The population treated with Effient was 27 to 96 years of age, 25% female, and 92% Caucasian. All patients in the TRITON-TIMI 38 study were to receive aspirin. The dose of clopidogrel in this study was a 300 mg loading dose and 75 mg once daily. Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials of a drug cannot be directly compared with the rates observed in other clinical trials of another drug and…
Who shouldn’t take prasugrel
Active pathological bleeding ( 4.1 ) Prior transient ischemic attack or stroke ( 4.2 ) Hypersensitivity to prasugrel or any component of the product ( 4.3 ) 4.1 Active Bleeding Effient is contraindicated in patients with active pathological bleeding such as peptic ulcer or intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1) and Adverse Reactions (6.1) ] . 4.2 Prior Transient Ischemic Attack or Stroke Effient is contraindicated in patients with a history of prior transient ischemic attack (TIA) or stroke. In TRITON-TIMI 38 ( TR ial to Assess I mprovement in T herapeutic Outcomes by O ptimizing Platelet Inhibitio N with Prasugrel), patients with a history of TIA or ischemic stroke (>3 months prior to enrollment) had a higher rate of stroke on Effient (6.5%; of which 4.2% were thrombotic stroke and 2.3% were intracranial hemorrhage [ICH]) than on clopidogrel (1.2%; all thrombotic). In patients without such a history, the incidence of stroke was 0.9% (0.2% ICH) and 1.0% (0.3% ICH) with Effient and clopidogrel, respectively. Patients with a history of ischemic stroke within 3 months of screening and patients with a history of hemorrhagic stroke at any time were excluded from TRITON-TIMI 38. Patients who experience a stroke or TIA while on Effient generally should have therapy discontinued [see Adverse Reactions (6.1) and Clinical Studies (14) ] . 4.3 Hypersensitivity Effient is contraindicated in patients with hypersensitivity (e.g., anaphylaxis) to prasugrel or any component of the product [see Adverse Reactions (6.2) ] .
Prasugrel drug interactions
Opioids: Decreased exposure to prasugrel. Consider use of parenteral antiplatelet agent ( 7.3 ). 7.1 Warfarin Coadministration of Effient and warfarin increases the risk of bleeding [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1) and Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] . 7.2 Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs Coadministration of Effient and NSAIDs (used chronically) may increase the risk of bleeding [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1) ] . 7.3 Opioids As with other oral P2Y 12 inhibitors, coadministration of opioid agonists delay and reduce the absorption of prasugrel's active metabolite presumably because of slowed gastric emptying [see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] . Consider the use of a parenteral anti-platelet agent in acute coronary syndrome patients requiring coadministration of morphine or other opioid agonists. 7.4 Other Concomitant Medications Effient can be administered with drugs that are inducers or inhibitors of cytochrome P450 enzymes [see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] . Effient can be administered with aspirin (75 mg to 325 mg per day), heparin, GPIIb/IIIa inhibitors, statins, digoxin, and drugs that elevate gastric pH, including proton pump inhibitors and H 2 blockers [see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] .
Every prasugrel 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: Effient.
What prasugrel pills look like
Imprint codes, colour and shape from the FDA’s labelling data. Match the imprint on your pill — or search any imprint.
| Imprint | Strength | Colour | Shape | Maker |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LU;B71 | 5 mg | yellow | capsule | — |
| LU;B72 | 10 mg | orange | capsule | — |
| 5;5121 | 5 mg | yellow | hexagon (6 sided) | — |
| 10;5123 | 10 mg | brown | hexagon (6 sided) | — |
| 10;mg;4759 | 10 mg | brown | hexagon (6 sided) | — |
Prasugrel recalls
From the FDA Enforcement database. A recall covers specific lots — not the drug as a whole.
How long prasugrel keeps
No prasugrel 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 prasugrel expire? The in-use limits and storage rules from its labelsPrasugrel and breastfeeding
From LactMed, the US National Library of Medicine’s Drugs and Lactation Database — quoted, not rewritten.
Full LactMed record for prasugrel: levels in milk, effects in breastfed infants, and the drugs it would consider insteadNo published information is available on the use of prasugrel during breastfeeding. It is rapidly converted to an active metabolite, which is 98% bound to plasma proteins, so it is unlikely that a clinically important amount is excreted into milk. Until more data become available, prasugrel should be used with caution during breastfeeding, especially while nursing a newborn or preterm infant. If it is used by a nursing mother, monitor the infant for bruising and bleeding.
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, record revised July 15, 2025. LactMed states its information is not a substitute for professional judgement.
What people report to the FDA about prasugrel
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) collects reports from patients and clinicians. It holds 1,916 reports naming prasugrel, and the FDA flagged 92% 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:
- myocardial infarction87 reports
- chest pain77 reports
- acute myocardial infarction70 reports
- cerebral infarction61 reports
- haemorrhage61 reports
- anaemia60 reports
- angina pectoris60 reports
- vascular stent thrombosis60 reports
Read these as a signal, not a rate. A report does not mean prasugrel 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 26, 2026.
Related calculators
Frequently asked questions
What is prasugrel?
Effient (Prasugrel Hydrochloride) is a p2y12 platelet inhibitor.
What kind of drug is prasugrel?
The FDA classifies prasugrel as a p2y12 platelet inhibitor. If you are checking whether it is safe to combine with something else, the class is what matters — two drugs from the same class usually should not be stacked.
Can you take prasugrel 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 prasugrel 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 prasugrel come in?
Across the brands we track, prasugrel is currently marketed as tablet, 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 prasugrel?
We do not currently list a generic-labelled prasugrel 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.
Has prasugrel been recalled?
The FDA's Enforcement database lists 2 recall records whose product description mentions prasugrel. The most recent: PRASUGREL TABLETS (Mar 5, 2025). A recall applies to specific lots, not to the drug as a whole — check the record for the affected lot numbers.
Cite this page
- APA
- pharmaranks. (2026, July 24). Prasugrel: uses, dosing, side effects & brands. https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/prasugrel
- MLA
- “Prasugrel: uses, dosing, side effects & brands.” pharmaranks, 24 July 2026, https://pharmaranks.com/drugs/prasugrel.
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 prasugrel on DailyMed (NIH) ↗ — including its boxed warning in full.