[Sumatriptan and its use in treatment of migraine and cluster headaches]

The methods used presently for abortion of the attacks of migraine and cluster headache are not fully satisfactory which causes that the search for new therapies is continuing. Although the mechanism of migraine attacks remains unexplained, it is thought that an important role in it is played by serotonin receptors, vasodilation in certain regions and opening of arteriovenous communications in the head. Sumatriptan is an agonist of 5-HT1 -like receptors and exerts a selective vasoconstricting effect on the arteries of the head, particularly in the rami of the carotid artery. In 1988 the first reports appeared on the effectiveness of the drug in migraine attacks. In the following years extensive, multicentre and international studies of the drug were carried out on over 600 healthy volunteers and nearly 6000 patients with migraine. The studies demonstrated that Sumatriptan was effective in abortion of migraine attacks. After oral administration of 100 mg or subcutaneous injection of 6 mg in nearly 70% of cases the attack regressed or was greatly alleviated, similarly as other symptoms accompanying the headache such as photophobia, nausea, vomiting. Studies were undertaken also on the effectiveness of Sumatriptan in emergency treatment of cluster headache, and good results were again achieved. The tolerance of the drug is good, although in some cases side effects develop, usually transient and mild, among them tingling, feeling of pressure, heat or heaviness of the head or chest, taste change and burning sensation at the site of injection. Sumatriptan, similarly as all novel drugs, requires caution in its use, particularly in patients with coronary heart disease and hypertension, and also in old patients. As yet, the use of the drug in paediatric migraine or in pregnancy is not recommended.