This commentary, published in June 2026, points out that spontaneous adverse drug reaction reporting is built around what happens while a drug is taken. Reactions that follow stopping a drug, including withdrawal and rebound, fit poorly into current forms and are under-reported.
The authors propose changes to reporting forms so that the timing of discontinuation, the tapering schedule and the reaction can be captured. Better data would show which drugs need slow tapers and how slow.
This is opinion rather than new data. But the practical step is available now: clinicians can report reactions that follow stopping a drug to their national pharmacovigilance programme, such as India's PvPI, and record the taper details with them.
- Report withdrawal and rebound reactions after stopping a drug, not only reactions while taking it.
- Record the dose, the tapering schedule and the time from the last dose to the reaction.
- Plan tapers for drugs with known withdrawal effects, such as antidepressants, benzodiazepines, gabapentinoids, beta-blockers and proton pump inhibitors.
- Tell patients what withdrawal symptoms to expect, so they are not mistaken for relapse.
Why it matters
Deprescribing is encouraged widely, but without withdrawal data clinicians cannot know which tapers are safe.
Don't overread it
This is a commentary proposing better reporting; it presents no new data on withdrawal risk.
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