What the trial was testing
The trial enrolled 1,590 patients with migraine. The study was sponsored by Pfizer and tracked outcomes across the full group of patients who matched the trial's eligibility profile.
It was mid-stage testing (phase 2/3). Trials at this stage are designed to produce evidence regulators and physicians can act on — not just observations to follow up later.
What the results showed
People taking rimegepant had 4.3 fewer migraine days per month, compared to 3.5 fewer days with placebo.
Lancet (London, England) · 2021 · NCT03732638
These findings — that taking rimegepant every other day reduced migraine frequency by about one extra day compared to placebo — were published in the Lancet (London, England) and represent the headline result of the study.
Researchers tracked outcomes across 1,590 patients enrolled in the trial. The result was consistent enough across the group that the team felt confident reporting it.
What this means for patients
For patients with migraine, this result changes the calculus on what to ask their care team about. Whether it changes day-to-day care depends on factors like disease subtype, prior treatments, and where the patient is in their care journey.
What you can do now
Rimegepant (Nurtec ODT) is now FDA-approved for both treating and preventing migraines. If you have frequent migraines, talk to your doctor about whether taking this medication every other day might help reduce how often you get them. Side effects were similar to placebo in this study.
Eligibility for the treatments mentioned above depends on specific test results and clinical history. Bring this summary, the trial name, and your most recent labs or pathology report to your next visit.
Open migraine trials
Sleep, Stress and Migraine - an Observational and Training Study
The MiSleepS study investigates how sleep disturbances and stress are linked to migraine attacks. Participants wear a device called a WHOOP band, which tracks sleep and body signals, and answer brief daily questions via a smartphone app about their sleep, stress levels, and migraine symptoms. The goal is to identify personal patterns that may contribute to migraine. Based on these insights, participants receive individualized recommendations to improve their sleep and daily routines - aiming to reduce migraine attacks in the long term without medication. The study is conducted at the University Hospital Zurich and is aimed at adults with episodic migraine.
Overlapping Pain Trajectory Study
The goal of this observational study is to learn about spatial and temporal nociceptive filtering in adolescents with chronic overlapping pain conditions (COPCs). The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. If spatial and temporal filtering of nociceptive information is disrupted in youth with COPCs compared with youth with localized pain conditions and healthy controls. 2. If disrupted nociceptive processing at baseline is associated with the transition from a single localized pain condition to COPCs in youth. Participation includes: * quantitative sensory testing * blood draw * sleep assessment * questionnaires