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Acetaminophen vs. Codeine: side effect and effectiveness comparison (a real world drug study)

Summary:

We compare the side effects and drug effectiveness of Acetaminophen and Codeine. The phase IV clinical study is created by eHealthMe based on reports (from sources including the FDA) of 542,406 people who take Acetaminophen and Codeine, and is updated regularly.

What is Acetaminophen?

Acetaminophen has active ingredients of acetaminophen. It is often used in pain. eHealthMe is studying from 183,070 Acetaminophen users. Check the latest studies of Acetaminophen.

What is Codeine?

Codeine has active ingredients of codeine sulfate. It is often used in pain. eHealthMe is studying from 42,341 Codeine users. Check the latest studies of Codeine.

On Oct, 09, 2025

542,406 people who take Acetaminophen and Codeine are studied.

Acetaminophen vs Codeine drug comparison reports.

Drugs being compared in this study:

  • Codeine (codeine sulfate)
  • Acetaminophen (acetaminophen)

Most common side effects of the drugs, overall:

Acetaminophen:

  1. Fatigue (feeling of tiredness)
  2. Nausea (feeling of having an urge to vomit)
  3. Drug Ineffective
  4. Diarrhoea
  5. Dyspnoea (difficult or laboured respiration)
  6. Vomiting
  7. Pyrexia (fever)
  8. Arthralgia (joint pain)
  9. Dizziness
  10. Malaise (a feeling of general discomfort or uneasiness)

Codeine:

  1. Drug Hypersensitivity
  2. Drug Ineffective
  3. Rash
  4. Arthralgia (joint pain)
  5. Nausea (feeling of having an urge to vomit)
  6. Rheumatoid Arthritis (a chronic progressive disease causing inflammation in the joints)
  7. Fatigue (feeling of tiredness)
  8. Diarrhoea
  9. Drug Intolerance (drug sensitivity)
  10. Malaise (a feeling of general discomfort or uneasiness)

Most common side effects of the drugs, in long term (1+ years) use:

Acetaminophen:

  1. Chronic Kidney Disease
  2. Renal Failure (kidney dysfunction)
  3. Nausea (feeling of having an urge to vomit)
  4. Fatigue (feeling of tiredness)
  5. Diarrhoea
  6. Dizziness
  7. Constipation
  8. Abdominal Pain
  9. Anxiety
  10. Arthralgia (joint pain)

Codeine:

  1. Chronic Kidney Disease
  2. Dizziness
  3. Alopecia (absence of hair from areas of the body)
  4. Drug Dependence
  5. Fatigue (feeling of tiredness)
  6. Abdominal Pain
  7. Nausea (feeling of having an urge to vomit)
  8. Diarrhoea
  9. Seizure (abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain)
  10. Anxiety

Drug effectiveness:

Acetaminophen:

  • not at all: 5.41 %
  • somewhat: 27.77 %
  • moderate: 39.34 %
  • high: 22.42 %
  • very high: 5.06 %

Codeine:

  • not at all: 2.44 %
  • somewhat: 26.44 %
  • moderate: 36.0 %
  • high: 27.33 %
  • very high: 7.78 %

Want to compare Acetaminophen with Codeine?

Personalize this study to your gender and age (0-99+).

How to use the study?

DO NOT STOP MEDICATIONS without first consulting your doctor. If there are any serious or long term adverse effects discovered in the study, discuss the study with your doctor to ensure that proper medication management will be in place if applicable.

Related studies

Alternative drugs to, pros and cons of:

Common Acetaminophen side effects:

Browse all side effects of Acetaminophen:

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Common Codeine side effects:

Browse all side effects of Codeine:

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

How the study uses the data?

The study is based on acetaminophen and codeine sulfate (the active ingredients of Acetaminophen and Codeine, respectively). Other drugs that have the same active ingredients (e.g. generic drugs or brand names) are also considered. Dosage of drugs is not considered in the study.

Who is eHealthMe?

With medical big data and proven AI/ML algorithms, eHealthMe provides a platform for everyone to run phase IV clinical trials. We study millions of patients and 5,000 more each day. Results of our real-world drug study have been referenced on 800+ peer-reviewed medical publications, including The Lancet, Mayo Clinic Proceedings, and Nature. Our analysis results are available to researchers, health care professionals, patients (testimonials), and software developers (open API).

WARNING, DISCLAIMER, USE FOR PUBLICATION

WARNING: Please DO NOT STOP MEDICATIONS without first consulting a physician since doing so could be hazardous to your health.

DISCLAIMER: All material available on eHealthMe.com is for informational purposes only, and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment provided by a qualified healthcare provider. All information is observation-only. Our phase IV clinical studies alone cannot establish cause-effect relationship. Different individuals may respond to medication in different ways. Every effort has been made to ensure that all information is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. The use of the eHealthMe site and its content is at your own risk.

If you use this eHealthMe study on publication, please acknowledge it with a citation: study title, URL, accessed date.

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