--- title: Does taking eletriptan around the time of menstruation prevent menstrual migraines? description: Yes, for most women. Taking eletriptan around menstruation reduced migraine activity by 46% overall. About 53% of women had all three of their menstrual perio url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/perimenstrual-eletriptan-prevents-menstrual-migraine-an-open-label-study-2010/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Does taking eletriptan around the time of menstruation prevent menstrual migraines? Non-randomised trial, 2010 # Does taking eletriptan around the time of menstruation prevent menstrual migraines? Yes, for most women. Taking eletriptan around menstruation reduced migraine activity by 46% overall. About 53% of women had all three of their menstrual periods completely migraine-free during treatment. Moderate study design 126 women with migraine believing it was menstrually-related; 74% were confirmed. ## What they did Women with suspected menstrually-related migraine kept headache diaries for 3 months to confirm diagnosis. Confirmed women (n=61) took eletriptan 20 mg three times daily for 6 days around menstruation in this open-label trial. Headache activity before and during treatment was compared. ## What they found Of 126 women enrolled, 74% were confirmed to have menstrually-related migraine. During treatment, 61 completed at least one month. Overall headache activity decreased by 46%. During the 6-day treatment period, 71% of treated menstrual cycles had no migraine. For complete success (no migraines 2 days before through first 3 days of menstruation), 53% achieved this all 3 months, 19% for 2 months, and 14% for 1 month. After stopping, 9% had migraines in the following 3 days. ## What it means for you For women whose migraines clearly occur around menstruation, preventive eletriptan can be very effective, with more than half achieving completely migraine-free periods. Some migraines return after stopping medication. The study lacks a placebo comparison group, so some benefit could be from expectation. Only women believing their migraines were menstrually-related were included. 74% Confirmed menstrually-related migraine 46% Overall decrease in headache activity 53% Women migraine-free all 3 treatment months ## About the study Original title Perimenstrual eletriptan prevents menstrual migraine: an open-label study Authors Marcus DA, Bernstein CD, Sullivan EA et al. Journal Headache Year 2010 Study design Non-randomised trial Participants 126 What was tested Eletriptan 20 mg three times daily, starting 2 days before menstruation for 6 days, for 3 months. Read the paper [doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-4610.2010.01628.x](https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-4610.2010.01628.x) ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Pain and headache](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-pain/)[Migraine](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-migraine/)[Relationships and partners](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-relationships/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Non-randomised trial, 2010 How accurate are different methods for diagnosing menstrual migraine? Cohort study, 2007 When do migraines and PMS symptoms occur during the menstrual cycle, and how are they related? Cohort study, 2006 How should severe period pain in teenagers be treated? Case-control study, 2004 Is job stress linked to having premenstrual symptoms? Study, 2001 Does estrogen or progesterone affect magnesium levels in brain blood vessels? Review, 1997 Why do migraines happen around the menstrual cycle and are they connected to PMS? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗