Of the 16 million U.S. adults suffering from migraines, eight million have migraine-related nausea and typically avoid the use of oral medications. Although the pain of migraine headaches is severe, migraine-related nausea can be as debilitating as migraine headache pain itself. However, good news has appeared on the medical scene for these people. The FDA has approved the Zecuity (sumatriptan) skin patch system for adults who have migraines with or without aura. The single-use, battery-powered patch offers relief of migraine-related nausea as well as migraine headache pain.
HOW IT WORKS
If you are considering using this type of device for your migraines, understanding how it works is important. This patch provides a treatment that bypasses the gastrointestinal tract for patients. By applying it to the upper arm or thigh during a migraine and activating it with a button, the patch delivers migraine medicine through the skin, bypassing the stomach. It delivers 6.5 milligrams in four hours. This means no more nausea for many patients.
RESEARCH RESULTS
In several studies of 800 migraine patients who used more than 10,000 patches, the patch treatment safely and effectively relieved migraine pain, migraine-related nausea, and even sensitivity to light and sound within two hours. In these studies, the results were the following:
• 18 percent of patients using the Zecuity patch had eliminated their headache, compared with nine percent of those using a placebo patch.
• 53 percent of patients using the Zecuity patch had some headache relief, compared with 29 percent of those using a placebo patch.
• 84 percent of patients using the Zecuity patch had no more nausea, compared with 63 percent of those using a placebo patch.
The most common side effects, which occurred in more than five percent of patients, were pain at the site of the patch, tingling, itching, warmth,
and discomfort. Other side effects were noticed in two percent of the people taking Zecuity. These side effects are often associated with the migraine drugs, called triptans and include “atypical sensations,” pain, and other pressure sensations.
If you are considering the patch, talk with your doctor because conditions such as heart disease or uncontrolled high blood pressure would disqualify you from taking the drug. And since Zecuity is a triptan, it may be associated with potentially life-threatening serotonin syndrome issues, mainly when it is used together with SSRI and SNRI antidepressants. However, if these conditions are not your situation, then the Zecuity patch may be just what the doctor ordered.
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