
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 31, 1993                   TAG: 9303310045
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: The Hartford Courant
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

NEW RELIEF AVAILABLE FOR MIGRAINE SUFFERERS

A new injectible prescription drug available for the first time this week could be a boon to sufferers of disabling migraines - although its hefty price could cause some headaches.

Imitrex, the trade name for the drug sumatriptan succinate, a product of the Cerenex Pharmaceuticals division of Glaxo Inc., is the first drug that can relieve virtually all the symptoms of migraine headaches - head pain, nausea and light and sound sensitivity - with only a few minor side effects. In clinical trials, 70 percent of migraine patients who used the drug experienced complete or near complete relief within an hour of using it.

Prospective patients will have to lose any squeamishness they might have about injecting themselves because that is the only way the drug is available. Imitrex comes with what's billed as an easy-to-use "self-injector."

Pharmacists report a price range of $70 to $80 for the Imitrex starter kit, which includes the self-injector and two cartridges, each of which delivers a single six-milligram dose. Two-dose refills are priced between $70 and $75.

by CNB