Ubrelvy is a prescription drug used to help treat migraine. It blocks a protein called calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) from acting on your nervous system. Ubrelvy works rapidly, often in minutes or hours.
Doctors may prescribe Ubrelvy (ubrogepant) for migraine with or without aura. Aura may occur right before or during a migraine episode. Common symptoms are visual disturbances, such as seeing flashes and dark spots or having foggy vision. Other symptoms may also occur.
Ubrelvy is not effective for treating other types of headaches. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved it for such uses.
Ubrelvy works by blocking the CGRP protein from acting in your nervous system. This protein may be involved in the development of migraine symptoms.
Your body can absorb Ubrelvy quickly. The drug can start working
Taking Ubrelvy with a high fat meal may delay its effect. Certain other medications may also influence how your body absorbs Ubrelvy, which affects how quickly it works.
Ubrelvy belongs to a group of medications called CGRP antagonists. These drugs work by blocking CGRP when the medications bind to nerve receptors that sense pain. CGRP is a protein in certain nerves. CGRP may play a role in how migraine symptoms develop.
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They also determined how long it took for ubrogepant to appear in the blood of participants taking ubrogepant. The researchers looked for a certain amount of the drug in the bloodstream of these participants. They detected this amount of ubrogepant within 11 minutes after participants took it. This means the drug reached the bloodstream quickly, providing fast symptom relief.
When taking Ubrelvy, you should follow the instructions from your doctor or those that come with your medication.
The degree of pain relief and the speed at which Ubrelvy takes action vary based on certain factors. These include whether you eat a high fat meal soon after taking Ubrelvy or use medications that can interact with Ubrelvy.
While you can take the medication with or without food, high fat food may delay its effect. Taking Ubrelvy with a high fat meal can slow absorption of the drug by up to 2 hours. It can also decrease the amount of the drug absorbed.
To receive the quickest possible pain relief, you should take Ubrelvy as soon as you can after your migraine episode begins. You can take a second tablet 2 hours after your first, as needed. But if you consume grapefruit or grapefruit juice, you should not take a second tablet within 24 hours of consuming either. These foods can block the enzyme that breaks down Ubrelvy, which increases the risk of side effects.
It’s not known whether it’s safe to take Ubrelvy for more than 8 migraine headaches in 30 days.
No, Ubrelvy does not work on tension headaches. It has FDA approval to treat only migraine headaches and no other headache type.
Ubrelvy’s action is not effective at treating other types of headaches. This is because the underlying causes of those headaches differ from those of migraine headaches.
For example, tightening of neck and scalp muscles may cause tension headaches. This tightening is often due to prolonged stress. Once you remove the cause of stress, tension headaches may lessen in pain. But with migraine, the protein CGRP may play a role in developing symptoms of this condition.
Ubrelvy isn’t known to interact with acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil). But you should not take Ubrelvy with other pain medications unless your doctor tells you it is safe.
Ubrelvy may interact with other medications. So, combining Ubrelvy and some medications may raise the risk of side effects.
You can take Ubrelvy with other home remedies that may help reduce migraine headaches. These include:
- napping
- having a massage or acupressure
- drinking water or a beverage containing electrolytes
- soaking your feet in hot water
It takes about 20 to 35 hours for your body to remove Ubrelvy. Studies show the drug has a half-life of 5 to 7 hours. It usually takes about four to five half-lives for a drug to leave a person’s body completely.
Any Ubrelvy side effects you may experience usually ease when your body clears the medication.
Ubrelvy is used to treat migraine symptoms. The drug acts rapidly and usually reaches its full effectiveness within 1.5 hours. Consuming Ubrelvy with a high fat meal may delay its absorption into the bloodstream and how quickly it begins working.
Talk with your doctor before taking other medications with Ubrelvy. Some medications can affect Ubrelvy’s action and increase the risk of side effects.
Disclaimer: Healthline has made every effort to make certain that all information is factually correct, comprehensive, and up to date. However, this article should not be used as a substitute for the knowledge and expertise of a licensed healthcare professional. You should always consult your doctor or another healthcare professional before taking any medication. The drug information contained herein is subject to change and is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. The absence of warnings or other information for a given drug does not indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective, or appropriate for all patients or all specific uses.