Intranasal sumatriptan powder seems to be a new and very promising way to deliver a migraine drug. Sumatriptan (Imitrex) nasal spray has been available for many years, however it is not very effective or at least is not consistently effective. The liquid tends to leak out of the nose, get swallowed, or just not get absorbed. Nasal spray of Zomig (zolmitriptan) appears to be more effective, perhaps because of the smaller volume of the liquid and a finer spray particles. The new product, OptiNose nasal powder seems to be even more effective. It is a sophisticated device which does not allow for the powder to enter the lungs and deposits the medicine only in the nasal cavity. In a study of 117 patients, 57% were pain-free and 80% had pain relief 2 hours after receiving 20 mg of sumatriptan powder, which was very significantly better than with placebo. The nasal powder seems to be three times more effective than the nasal spray and almost as effective as an injection. We hope that the FDA will approve this product in the near future.
