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Newly Approved Agents for the Treatment and Prevention of Pediatric Migraine

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Abstract

Treatment of pediatric migraine remains an unmet medical need. There continues to be a paucity of pediatric randomized controlled trials for the treatment of migraine, both in the acute and preventive settings. Pediatric studies are often complicated by high placebo-response rates and much of our current practice is based on adult trials. This lack of significant pediatric studies results in a wide variation in migraine management both amongst clinicians and between institutions, and evidence-based treatments are not always administered. In this article, we aim to briefly review newly approved abortive and preventive agents for migraine in the pediatric age group. Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications, including ibuprofen, naproxen sodium, aspirin, and acetaminophen are reasonable first-line options for abortive therapy. In addition, studies have shown triptans, or migraine-specific agents, to be safe and effective in children and adolescents and several formulations have been approved for the pediatric population, including rizatriptan, almotriptan, zolmitriptan nasal spray, and naproxen sodium/sumatriptan in combination.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Neurology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, 3333 Burnett Avenue, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA

    Joanne Kacperski & Andrew D. Hershey

  2. College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    Joanne Kacperski & Andrew D. Hershey

Authors
  1. Joanne Kacperski
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  2. Andrew D. Hershey
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Correspondence to Joanne Kacperski.

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No sources of funding were used to assist with the preparation of this review.

Conflict of interest

Joanne Kacperski has no conflicts of interest to report. Andrew D. Hershey receives consulting fees and/or honorarium from Allergen, Amgen, Curelator Inc., Impax Laboratories, Eli-Lilly, and Teva.

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Kacperski, J., Hershey, A.D. Newly Approved Agents for the Treatment and Prevention of Pediatric Migraine. CNS Drugs 30, 837–844 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40263-016-0375-y

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