Propofol: uses, dosing, side effects & brands

How propofol is dosed

From the FDA label for Diprivan (application NDA019627). Other propofol products — different forms, different strengths — are dosed differently. Follow the label for the one you were prescribed.

Propofol blood concentrations at steady-state are generally proportional to infusion rates, especially in individual patients. Undesirable effects such as cardiorespiratory depression are likely to occur at higher blood concentrations which result from bolus dosing or rapid increases in the infusion rate. An adequate interval (3 minutes to 5 minutes) must be allowed between dose adjustments to allow for and assess the clinical effects. Shake well before use. Do not use if there is evidence of excessive creaming or aggregation, if large droplets are visible, or if there are other forms of phase separation indicating that the stability of the product has been compromised. Slight creaming, which should disappear after shaking, may be visible upon prolonged standing. When administering DIPRIVAN by infusion, syringe or volumetric pumps are recommended to provide controlled infusion rates. When infusing DIPRIVAN to patients undergoing magnetic resonance imaging, metered control devices may be utilized if mechanical pumps are impractical. Changes in vital signs indicating a stress response to surgical stimulation or the emergence from anesthesia may be controlled by the administration of 25 mg (2.5 mL) to 50 mg (5 mL) incremental boluses and/or by increasing the infusion rate of DIPRIVAN. For minor surgical procedures (e.g., body surface) nitrous oxide (60% to 70%) can be combined…

Propofol side effects

Who shouldn’t take propofol

How long propofol keeps

No propofol 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.

Propofol and breastfeeding

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

Amounts of propofol in milk are very small and are not expected to be absorbed by the infant. Although one expert panel recommends withholding nursing for an unspecified time after propofol administration, most recommend that breastfeeding can be resumed as soon as the mother has recovered sufficiently from general anesthesia to nurse and that discarding milk is unnecessary. When a combination of anesthetic agents is used for a procedure, follow the recommendations for the most problematic medication used during the procedure. General anesthesia for cesarean section using propofol as a component for induction may delay the onset of lactation. In one study, breastfeeding before general anesthesia induction reduced requirements of propofol and sevoflurane compared to those of nursing mothers whose breastfeeding was withheld or nonnursing women. Case reports have noted blue-green or green discoloration of breastmilk after nursing mothers received propofol.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, record revised February 15, 2021. LactMed states its information is not a substitute for professional judgement.

What people report to the FDA about propofol

The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) collects reports from patients and clinicians. It holds 34,899 reports naming propofol, and the FDA flagged 95% 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:

• hypotension2,792 reports
• anaphylactic shock2,093 reports
• anaphylactic reaction1,824 reports
• tachycardia1,149 reports
• bradycardia1,133 reports
• pyrexia987 reports
• acute kidney injury946 reports
• rhabdomyolysis848 reports

Source: openFDA drug/event (FAERS), retrieved July 26, 2026.

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