In today’s fast-paced world, Migraine is one common problem in adults. While there can be a number of medications available in the market, Emgality is one prescription medication that is primarily targeted at treating Migraines in adults.
Emgality is available in the form of a pre-filled syringe or pen that anyone can use safely to inject the drug in their body.
Multiple clinical studies have revealed that as high as 28 percent of people with chronic migraine, who have been taking this drug for 3 months, got reduced the number of headaches by up to 50 percent. In contrast, the percentage of people with episodic migraines is as significant as 60 percent over a period of 6 months.
Emgality proves to be quite effective for people who have been unable to get rid of or even reduce the number of migraines through one or more other therapies.
How Emgality is used to treat Migraines
Emgality is an officially FDA-approved prescription medication aimed at the treatment of individuals with certain conditions.
People with Migraines
Since Emgality is FDA-approved to prevent migraines from bothering adults, you can find it officially available worldwide to treat both chronic and episodic migraines.
On an average, individuals can get up to 15 chronic migraines a month. In contrast, the instances of episodic migraines are usually fewer than 15 a month.
Off-label uses
Well, not all purposes Emgality is used for are approved by the FDA. There are many unapproved or off-label uses of this drug too. Here are a few of them:
Cluster Headaches
Although the FDA has not approved Emgality to treat cluster headaches, you can easily find it widely used as an off-label medication to treat this condition.
Do you know the reason why cluster headaches are names so? Well, this is because in this condition, an individual suffers several headaches together at the same time. Generally, cluster headaches are often very painful and can be found in the cases of chronic and episodic migraines.
As a result of a clinical study, the researchers found that Emgality can significantly reduce the number of headache one with episodic cluster headaches suffers in one week typically after three weeks of treatment. The study also resulted in some stats that would reveal as high as 76% of people who took Emgality got 50% reduced cluster headaches.
Well, the key point here to notice is that all these people only took a dosage of 300 mg of Emgality per month. This is way higher than the dosage recommended by the FDA.
In contrast, another study that was conducted parallelly did not find Emgality to be able to prevent or even reduce chronic cluster headaches in number after 12 weeks of treatment.
Now, since there is no proven evidence in the favor of Emgality as a medication for the treatment of migraines, there are still multiple studies going on just to find out whether this very drug is worth prescribing to treat cluster headaches in adults.
For Vestibular Migraines
FDA has not approved Emgality to treat vestibular migraines because this very condition is pretty much different from regular migraines and do not induce much pain.
On the other hand, individuals with the condition of vestibular migraine often complain about the feeling of dizziness or even vertigo. These symptoms can last for up to a few hours from only a few seconds.
Needless to say, Emgality has not turned out to be an effective measure of the treatment or prevention of vestibular migraines. Moreover, while Emgality is not at all being tested for its ability to treat vestibular migraines, some doctors do prescribe it off label.
How to take Emgality?
The preferred and highly recommended mode of taking Emgality is under your skin, as it only comes in the form of a pre-filled injection or pen. Your healthcare provider is supposed to guide you in regards to taking your medication. Once you’re given a demo, you should be able to take your medication on your own.
However, make sure you take your first injection right before your doctor to avoid any mistake. At first, you are required to give yourself 2 separate injections, and then only one injection each month on your own.
Well, based on the availability of this drug, you may find two distinct forms – a syringe and a pen – both pre-filled for single use only. Since these include the only dose, you are supposed to discard the syringe/pen after it is used. Your doctor is the best person to guide you on which of these forms you should go for.
The following is the information on instruction regarding the use of a syringe as well as of a pen.
Remember: Your first dose requires you two syringes or pens.
While the instructions regarding the use of both Emgality pen and syringe are different from one another, the preparation steps can be the same for both.
Preparing to Inject
As you are supposed to keep the syringe or pen in a refrigerator, you need to take it out of the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before using it. Doing so allows the temperature of the medication to match with the room temperature.
It is recommended not to remove the cap of the syringe or pen when you are not going to use it.
Remember: If you take the syringe or pen out of your refrigerator and it reaches the room temperature, make sure to use it.
While you are ready to inject the medication, grab an alcohol wipe or a cotton ball to clean and dry the target spot.
Also, do check the syringe or pen to ensure that the medication is not expired. Generally, you find it clear to slightly yellow or even brown. If you see bubbles, that’s perfectly fine. However, if you see it cloudy or discolored or find some solid pieces inside it, do not use it, whatsoever. Immediately contact your doctor and get a new syringe or pen.
While Emgality is FDA-approved to treat adult individuals with migraines, it is still under multiple clinical studies to finally turn out as the best prescription medication to prevent migraines. Always go with your doctor’s prescription and seek medical attention as and when needed.
