Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41824241›Full record

ReviewEuropean journal of drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics2026

Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics, Efficacy and Safety of Fremanezumab in Children and Adolescents with Migraine.

Luigi Francesco Iannone, Marina Romozzi, Laura Papetti, Irene Toldo, Massimiliano Valeriani, Pierangelo Geppetti

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in European journal of drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Luigi Francesco Iannone *Department of Biomedical, Metabolic, and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy. luigifrancesco.iannone@unimore.it.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3598-0195
Marina Romozzi *Dipartimento Universitario di Neuroscienze, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy.
Laura PapettiDevelopmental Neurology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy.
Irene ToldoPediatric Neurology and Neurophysiology, Department of Women's and Children's Health, University of Padua, Padova, Italy.
Massimiliano ValerianiDevelopmental Neurology, Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy.
Pierangelo GeppettiDepartment of Molecular Pathobiology and Pain Research Center, New York University, New York, NY, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Migraine affects up to 11% of children and adolescents, leading to substantial disability through school absenteeism, cognitive impairment, and reduced quality of life. Traditionally, preventive treatment options for this population have been limited to the off-label use of nutraceuticals, antiseizure medications, calcium channel blockers, serotonin modulators, antidepressants, or beta-blockers, with limited efficacy and tolerability data. Monoclonal antibodies targeting the calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) pathway have transformed adult migraine prevention, and fremanezumab is the first in this class to receive regulatory approval for pediatric use. In August 2025, the US Food and Drug Administration approved fremanezumab for the preventive treatment of episodic migraine in patients aged 6-17 years weighing at least 45 kg, based on the pivotal phase three SPACE trial. This randomized, placebo-controlled study demonstrated significant reductions in monthly migraine and headache days, with nearly half of treated participants achieving a ≥50% response rate, and a safety profile consistent with adult data. In this review, we provide an integrated, pediatric-focused synthesis of the pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, and regulatory evidence supporting fremanezumab use in children and adolescents. In particular, we contextualize population pharmacokinetic modeling and pediatric phase 1 data to explain the rationale for weight-based dosing, exposure matching with adults, and the selection of the dosing regimens used in clinical trials and regulatory labeling. Pharmacokinetic analyses indicate that fremanezumab follows a two-compartment model with first-order absorption and a terminal half-life of approximately 30 days in pediatric patients, similar to adults, with body weight as the primary determinant of exposure. Finally, we discuss unresolved issues related to long-term CGRP blockade during growth, including theoretical effects on vascular regulation, bone metabolism, and neurodevelopment. Overall, fremanezumab represents a novel, mechanism-based preventive option for older children and adolescents with episodic migraine, while highlighting the need for continued longitudinal studies to define its long-term safety and optimal role in pediatric migraine management.

Indexed as

Antibodies, MonoclonalMigraine DisordersAdolescentCalcitonin Gene-Related PeptideChildHumansAntibodies, MonoclonalCalcitonin Gene-Related Peptidefremanezumab

Identifiers

PMID41824241
PMCPMC13031235

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.