Migraine is often characterized by episodic and chronic migraine. Episodic patients experience migraines on fewer than 15 days a month, while chronic migraine causes headaches at least 15 days a month.

The current acute migraine therapy is based on specific and non-specific drugs; however, over 35% of the patient did not achieve benefit from conventional treatments like triptans. Serotonin-1F receptors have been identified in the trigeminal system and are being considered as an ideal target for anti-migraine drug development.

Recently, Lasmiditan, a new drug is being investigated for the treatment of migraine attacks. This drug belongs to a class of ditans, which unlike triptans, penetrates into the central nervous system and selectively targets 5-HT1F receptors expressed in the trigeminal pathway. Lasmiditan does not interact with vasoconstrictor 5-HT1B/1D receptors activated by triptans.

Capi M, et al. reviewed both preclinical and clinical studies on lasmiditan as a potential acute therapy for migraine, as well as pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic features. The data from various human studies on safety as well as on tolerability of lasmiditan for migraines was collected and analyzed.

It was found that Lasmiditan designed to treat acute migraine headaches without the vasoconstrictor activity associated with previous generations of migraine therapies. Unlike triptans, lasmiditan lacks vasoconstrictive activity which makes it a potential drug for migraine. However, further larger studies are required to fully understand the benefits of  Lasmiditan.