Vayarin (phosphatidylserine-omega-3, Liprinen) Side Effects, Warnings, and Drug Interactions

Vayarin (phosphatidylserine-omega-3, Liprinen) is a prescription medical food for the clinical dietary management of complex lipid imbalances associated with childhood ADHD. 

Vayarin is a specially formulated and processed composition designed to address the distinct, medically determined lipid nutritional requirements of children with ADHD, the dietary management of which cannot be achieved by modification of the normal diet or use of dietary supplements. 

Common side effects of Vayarin include:

• abdominal pain,
• dry and itchy skin,
• tics,
• nausea,
• hyperactivity,
• tantrum,
• headache, and
• insomnia.

Vayarin has no listed serious side effects.

Drug interactions of Vayarin include some anticholinergic and cholinergic drugs. It should be used cautiously by people allergic to shellfish because it contains shellfish (krill). Safety and effectiveness of Vayarin in pregnant or breastfeeding patients have not been established. Therefore, Vayarin is not recommended for these populations.

WARNING

• Vayarin should not be used by people who are allergic to any of its components.
• It should be used cautiously by people allergic to shellfish because it contains shellfish (Krill).

Adverse Events

The adverse events of Vayarin were evaluated in a randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled study of 15 weeks followed by an open label extension of an additional 15 weeks.

Adverse events reported during the course of the double-blind phase (table 2): 12 participants from the Vayarin group and 5 participants from the placebo group were classified by the study physicians as suffering from treatment related, or probably related, adverse events (13 and 5 adverse events, respectively). There were no significant differences between the study groups in either the incidence or number of adverse events recorded (P = 0.848 and P = 0.982, respectively).

Adverse events reported during the course of the open-label extension (table 2): 5 participants reported 7 adverse events that were classified by the study physicians as related or probably related to the study treatment.

Table 2

Table 2. Adverse events reported during the course of the double-blind and the open label phase.

*Judged by the study physicians as related or probably related to the study treatment

Drug Abuse

Vayarin does not have any known drug abuse or withdrawal effects.

No information provided.