What are the side effects of Deutetrabenazine?
Last updated September 7, 2026.
The most common side effects of deutetrabenazine are drowsiness, tiredness, diarrhea, dry mouth, and trouble sleeping, and the most serious is new or worsening depression and suicidal thinking in people with Huntington disease. Which effects you notice depends on your dose, how fast it was raised, and what else you take. Deutetrabenazine is a VMAT2 inhibitor used for tardive dyskinesia and for chorea in Huntington disease, and it can also cause restlessness or an urge to keep moving (akathisia), slowed or stiff movement that resembles parkinsonism, and lightheadedness when you stand up. Most side effects show up during the weeks when the dose is being titrated up and settle once you reach a steady dose. Taking each dose with food, keeping the schedule consistent, and standing up slowly cut down on nausea and dizziness. Anyone living with you should know to report mood changes, since depression can build quietly.
What to do
- Track mood weekly: Write down sleep, mood, and any hopeless or self-harm thoughts, and share the log at every visit.
- Take it with food: Food improves absorption and lowers nausea, so pair each dose with a meal or snack at the same times daily.
- Expect a slow titration: Doses go up in small weekly steps, and most drowsiness or restlessness fades once you settle at one dose.
- Report movement changes: New stiffness, slowed walking, tremor, or an inability to sit still means your dose likely needs review.
- Check every other medicine: Tell your prescriber about MAO inhibitors, tetrabenazine, valbenazine, reserpine, antipsychotics, and any drug that affects heart rhythm.
- Get urgent care for red flags: High fever with muscle rigidity and confusion, fainting, or suicidal thoughts need emergency evaluation, not a wait-and-see approach.
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