Introduction

Migraine headaches are a type of severe headache that affect approximately thirty-six million Americans. The American Migraine Foundation estimates that one in every four American households has, at least, one member suffering from migraines. Furthermore, the financial burden of migraine headaches runs in excess of 20 billion dollars annually. Migraine headaches can be debilitating and often significantly impact a patient’s quality of life. There is no cure for migraines. Current treatments are used to reduce the frequency and severity of headaches and enable patients to return to normal functioning.   

Medications available for the treatment of migraine headaches include:

Analgesics

• acetaminophen (Tylenol)
• acetaminophen/aspirin/caffeine (Excedrin Migraine)

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS)

• aspirin, ibuprofen (Motrin)
• naproxen sodium (Aleve, Anaprox)
• Diclofenac (Voltaren)

Ergots

• ergotamine tartrate (oral tablets, sublingual tablets, rectal suppositories)
• dihydroergotamine (injection, nasal spray)

Triptans (serotonin agonists)

• sumatriptan (Imitrex, Zecuity)
• Zolmitriptan (Zomig, Zomig-ZMT)
• naratriptan (Amerge)
• rizatriptan (Maxalt, Maxalt-MLT)
• almotriptan (Axert), frovatriptan (Frova)
• eletriptan (Relpax)

Migraine treatments are available as oral tablets, sublingual tablets, rectal suppositories, injections, and nasal sprays. More recently a patch and a medical device were approved for the management of migraine headaches. 

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