When should abortive therapies for migraine headaches be taken?

• A. Take after symptoms have peaked
• B. Take as soon as symptoms start
• C. Take only if nausea is present
• D. Take daily regardless

Answer: (B)

Taking abortive therapy as soon as migraine symptoms begin is most effective. At onset, the mechanisms driving the migraine are still in the early stages, so medications like triptans and NSAIDs can blunt the inflammatory cascade and vascular changes before central sensitization fully develops. This early intervention increases the chance of stopping the attack or significantly reducing its intensity and duration.

Waiting until symptoms have peaked makes the treatment far less likely to work well, because the migraine process is more fully established and harder to reverse. Nausea can accompany migraines but isn’t a requirement for treatment, and taking medication daily is a different approach (prophylaxis), not abortive therapy.