Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2010 Feb;11(1):5-12.
doi: 10.1007/s10194-009-0170-y. Epub 2009 Dec 10.

Does sumatriptan cross the blood-brain barrier in animals and man?

Peer Carsten Tfelt-Hansen  1
Affiliations
Review

Does sumatriptan cross the blood-brain barrier in animals and man?

Peer Carsten Tfelt-Hansen. J Headache Pain. 2010 Feb.

Abstract

Sumatriptan, a relatively hydrophilic triptan, based on several animal studies has been regarded to be unable to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). In more recent animal studies there are strong indications that sumatriptan to some extent can cross the BBB. The CNS adverse events of sumatriptan in migraine patients and normal volunteers also indicate a more general effect of sumatriptan on CNS indicating that the drug can cross the BBB in man. It has been discussed whether a defect in the BBB during migraine attacks could be responsible for a possible central effect of sumatriptan in migraine. This review suggests that there is no need for a breakdown in the BBB to occur in order to explain a possible central CNS effect of sumatriptan.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Tfelt-Hansen P, Vries P, Saxena PR. Triptans in migraine. A comparative review of pharmacology, pharmacokinetics and efficacy. Drugs. 2000;60:1259–1287. doi: 10.2165/00003495-200060060-00003. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ferrari MD, Goadsby PJ, Roon KI, Lipton RB. Triptans (serotonin, 5-HT1B/1D agonists) in migraine: detailed results and methods of a meta-analysis of 53 trials. Cephalalgia. 2002;22:633–658. doi: 10.1046/j.1468-2982.2002.00404.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Saxena PR, Tfelt-Hansen P. Triptans, 5HT1B/1D agonists in the acute treatment of migraine. In: Olesen J, Goadsby PJ, Ramadan NM, Tfelt-Hansen P, Welch KMA, editors. The headaches. 3. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins; 2006. pp. 469–503.
    1. Tfelt-Hansen P. Maximum effect of triptans in migraine? A comment. Cephalalgia. 2008;28:767–768. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2982.2007.01415.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hoskin KL, Goadsby PJ. Comparison of more and less lipophilic serotonin (5-HT 1B/1D) agonists in a model of trigeminovascular nociception in cat. Exp Neurol. 1998;150:45–51. doi: 10.1006/exnr.1997.6749. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources