Rimegepant, sold under the brand name Nurtec ODT among others, is a

medication Medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal product, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to medical diagnosis, diagnose, cure, treat, or preventive medicine, prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmaco ...

used for the acute treatment of

migraine Migraine (, ) is a complex neurological disorder characterized by episodes of moderate-to-severe headache, most often unilateral and generally associated with nausea, and light and sound sensitivity. Other characterizing symptoms may includ ...

with or without

aura Aura most commonly refers to: * Aura (paranormal), a purported field of luminous multi-colored radiation around a person or object * Aura (symptom), a symptom experienced before a migraine or seizure * Halo (religious iconography), glory, or aure ...

in adults and the prophylactic/ preventive treatment of episodic migraine in adults. It is taken

by mouth Oral administration is a route of administration whereby a substance is taken through the Human mouth, mouth, swallowed, and then processed via the digestive system. This is a common route of administration for many medications. Oral administ ...

to dissolve on or under the tongue. It works by blocking CGRP receptors. In the United States, rimegepant was approved for treating acute migraine in February 2020, and its approval was extended to preventing episodic migraine in June 2021. It is produced and marketed by

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered at The Spiral (New York City), The Spiral in Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 184 ...

. In March 2021, rimegepant was approved for medical use in the United Arab Emirates and in Israel. It was approved for medical use in Canada in December 2023. In the United Kingdom, rimegepant is approved by NICE for the prophylaxis and treatment of acute migraine in adults.

Medical uses

Rimegepant is

indicated In medicine, an indication is a valid reason to use a certain test, medication, procedure, or surgery. There can be multiple indications to use a procedure or medication. An indication can commonly be confused with the term diagnosis. A diagnosis ...

for the treatment of acute migraine with or without aura in adults and for the preventative treatment of episodic migraine in adults.

Mechanism of action

Rimegepant is a small molecule calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) receptor antagonist.

History

Rimegepant was developed by Biohaven Pharmaceuticals, which markets the drug in the United States after receiving

FDA approval The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...

in February 2020. Approval was based on evidence from one

clinical trial Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human subject research, human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel v ...

of 1,351 subjects with migraine headaches.

Society and culture

Legal status

In February 2022, the

Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP), formerly known as the Committee for Proprietary Medicinal Products (CPMP), is the European Medicines Agency's committee responsible for elaborating the agency's opinions on all issues regar ...

(CHMP) of the

European Medicines Agency The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is an agency of the European Union (EU) in charge of the evaluation and supervision of pharmaceutical products. Prior to 2004, it was known as the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products ...

(EMA) adopted a positive opinion, recommending the granting of a marketing authorization for the medicinal product Vydura, intended for the prophylaxis and acute treatment of migraine. The applicant for this medicinal product is Biohaven Pharmaceutical Ireland DAC. Text was copied from this source which is copyright European Medicines Agency. Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged. Rimegepant was approved for medical use in the European Union in April 2022.

Economics

Pfizer reported revenue of for Nurtec ODT/Vydura in 2023. Marketing American singer, songwriter and actress

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...

is featured in advertisements for rimegepant, under the Nurtec ODT brand. Her involvement sparked criticism of the role of celebrities in pharmaceutical endorsements.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Antimigraine drugs Calcitonin gene-related peptide receptor antagonists Carbamates Fluoroarenes Heterocyclic compounds with 2 rings Nitrogen heterocycles Piperidines Drugs developed by Pfizer