Stopping Antihistamine Leads to Unbelievable Itching

Every so often, doctors discover something from their own experience as patients that they didn’t learn in medical school and haven’t heard from their colleagues. Often, the symptoms of withdrawal from common medications may fit this description. Who knew that suddenly quitting an OTC antihistamine could result in unbelievable itching?

Stopping Cetirizine Produces Unbelievable Itching:

Q. As a doctor with 35 years in practice, I did not realize withdrawal from the antihistamine cetirizine caused severe itching until I had the problem myself.

I have been taking cetirizine for more than three years. Like many others, I experienced severe itching and hives all over my body when I stopped taking it.

One tablet would cover 36 hours free of symptoms. However, if I missed taking it right before the time limit, my skin started itching and hives would develop. I tried to wean off it three times, but failed due to unbelievable itching. My lips and eyelids swelled too. I am afraid my epiglottis or throat might swell some day so that I could not breathe.

I checked the medical literature and found, to my surprise, there are no reports of cetirizine withdrawal symptoms. Doctors should know about this.

No Information on This Withdrawal Symptom:

A. We have received hundreds of reports of unbearable itching resulting from sudden discontinuation of the allergy drug cetirizine (Zyrtec). We have alerted the FDA about this reaction, and after several years the agency added this withdrawal syndrome to the Post-Marketing Surveillance portion of the prescribing information.

The FDA-approved Prescribing Information (PI, which could also stand for package insert) is the main source of information for doctors. These extensive summaries are published in the Physicians Desk Reference, and they are also available online at DailyMed.gov.

We were never able to find mention of a withdrawal syndrome in the prescribing information when Zyrtec was still a prescription product. As an OTC drug, it carries very limited safety information. People rarely anticipate difficulty stopping a nonprescription pill.

Many People Suffer Unbelievable Itching When They Stop Cetirizine:

Nonetheless, so many visitors to this site have reported similar problems that there is little doubt cetirizine withdrawal itch is a common problem. Some who have stuck it out have reported that the itching fades after six to eight weeks. That is a long time to endure severe itching and hives, but it may be worth consideration.

Zyrtec Is Not the Only Antihistamine With This Withdrawal Syndrome:

Xyzal (levocetirizine) is closely related to Zyrtec, so it is hardly surprising that some people also experience withdrawal itch when they stop this antihistamine. We have also received some reports about itching after quitting Claritin, which is unrelated.

Mother-in-Law Quits Claritin:

Q. My mother-in-law took Claritin for years to treat allergies. When she stopped taking it, she became so itchy she thought it might even be poison ivy. Instead, her doctor told her it was because she stopped Claritin cold turkey. He told her to taper it, so she started back on it. After she slowly weaned herself off, she was free of rash and itch.

A. We have often heard from readers that they experienced unbearable itching after stopping the antihistamines cetirizine (Zyrtec) or levocetirizine (Xyzal) suddenly. Thank you for pointing out that stopping other antihistamines abruptly may also produce this withdrawal reaction in susceptible individuals.

Stopping Claritin Led to Itching:

Q. I took Claritin during the allergy season for maybe two months. Now I’ve had unbelievable itching for the past three weeks. Have you ever heard of such a problem?

A. We have heard from many readers who have experienced severe itching for weeks after discontinuing the antihistamines cetirizine (Zyrtec) or levocetirizine (Xyzal). In addition, some people have reported itching upon stopping loratadine (Claritin). Most readers tell us the itching fades with time, although there are no clear guidelines on how long the misery might last.