Why have I been given this information?
You have been given this information because you are being treated for migraines. A medicine called fremanezumab is one of the treatment options. The brand name is Ajovy.
What is Ajovy and how does it work?
Ajovy is a prescription medicine used to prevent migraines in adults who have at least four migraine days a month.
Ajovy works by blocking the protein called Calcitonin Gene-related peptide (CGRP). This protein is related to pain transmission in your brain. This means that migraines will happen less often, and when they do happen, they will be less severe.
How do I take Ajovy?
Ajovy is delivered to you at home, and you should store it in your fridge.
You inject Ajovy yourself in your thigh or abdomen (tummy). You do this on the same date every calendar month. The pharmacy that delivers Ajovy can give you some training on how to self-inject the medication.
Who can take Ajovy?
You will be given Ajovy if:
- you have four or more migraines a month and
- you have tried at least three other preventative drugs and they have not helped to improve your migraines, or you could not tolerate the side effects to those drugs.
Does Ajovy have any side effects?
Like all medicines, this medicine can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them.
Allergic reactions with Ajovy are usually mild to moderate (such as rash or itching). Serious allergic reactions may occur rarely (may affect up to 1 in 1 000 people) and the signs may include:
- difficulty breathing or swallowing
- low blood pressure, which can cause dizziness or light-headedness
- swelling of the neck, face, mouth, lips, tongue or throat which may develop rapidly
- severe itching of the skin, with a red rash or raised bumps
Very common side effects (may affect more than 1 in 10 people):
- Pain in the place where you have injected yourself (the injection site)
- Injection site reactions (for example, red skin, itching, bruising, swelling)
Common side effects (may affect up to 1 in 10 people):
- Itching
Uncommon side effects (may affect up to 1 in 100 people):
- Rash
If you get any side effects, talk to your doctor, pharmacist or nurse. This includes any possible side effects not listed in this leaflet.
You can also report side effects directly via the Yellow Card Scheme, website: www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard
Which health conditions that I may have had must I tell my consultant or the headache nursing team about?
You must not take Ajovy if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Some health conditions mean that taking Ajovy might not be safe for you.
Let your consultant or headache nursing team know if you have ever experienced or experience any of the following:
- high blood pressure (blood pressure over 150mmHg systolic)
- heart attack
- stroke
- DVT
- transient ischemic attack (TIA)
- unstable angina
- if you plan pregnancy in near future or if you are breastfeeding
- a disease or condition which has damaged your liver or kidneys, so they do not work as well
- have bowel disease that makes you more likely to be constipated.
What happens after I start using Ajovy?
When you start using Ajovy, you will be offered a three-month trial.
One week after your injection on month three, you will have a telephone call with one of our headache nurse specialists, to see how you responded to Ajovy.
It is important that you keep a headache diary that clearly shows the days you had a migraine as well as how severe the migraine was, scoring it from 0 to 10 (10 being the worst). The nurse will be able to judge how well the Ajovy is working by looking at your diary.
If you have chronic migraine (more than 15 days a month), you will be able to continue with Ajovy if your migraines are at least 30% better than before you started the Ajovy.
If you have episodic migraine (four to 14 migraine days a month), you will be able to continue with Ajovy if your migraines are at least 50% better than before you started Ajovyem.
A few days before your telephone appointment, please send the photo of your headache diary to [email protected]
Who can I contact for information and advice?
Please contact the headache nursing team at [email protected] for advice. Alternatively, you can call your consultant’s secretary, and they can direct your enquiry.
The information here is for guidance purposes only and is in no way intended to replace professional clinical advice by a qualified practitioner.