If Approved, Inhaled Drug May Help Migraine

Anyone who has had a migraine knows that nothing can get rid of it fast enough. And, for some people, nothing can get rid of it at all. There are many migraine medications on the market now but since we’re all such individuals, not every medication can help everyone.

Dihydroergotamine, or DHE, is a medication that is given by injection and it works for many people. MAP Pharmaceuticals has developed an inhaled version of DHE, called Levadex. This past may, a Phase III study showed that Levadex was effective in many patients.

The study involved 798 patients. Two hours after taking either Levadex or placebo, 58.7% of the patients who took Levadex reported pain relief compared with 34.5% who had the placebo. Forty-six percent of patients who took Levadex had relief from photophobia, or difficulty with lights, compared with 27.2% who took placebos. Finally, 67.1% of patients who took Levadex reported that their nausea went away, compared with 58.7% of those who took placebos.

Let’s see what the FDA thinks now.

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