Bioequivalence in migraine: influence of migraine on pharmacokinetics and gastric emptying

B. van der Schueren & J. de Hoon

In an attempt to improve clinical drug development, one has become increasingly attentive to how the rate and extent of absorption of a compound can be influenced by pathophysiological processes and how this can affect drug efficacy. Whereas previously the term bioequivalence was exclusively used to imply that the rate and extent of absorption of two pharmaceutical compounds did not differ statistically, it is now often used to refer to the changes in the kinetic properties of a compound when administered under different circumstances.

Migraine is known to delay the absorption of orally administered drugs, which leads to postponed therapeutic responses and smaller response rates. As anti-migraine compounds are specifically intended to rapidly abort an acute attack, their pharmacokinetic properties, which are directly linked to their efficacy, should be evaluated early in the development of new compounds. An overview is provided of the existing literature illustrating the influence of migraine headache on the bioequivalence of acute antimigraine drugs.

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