A sufficient sumatriptan dose is determined by many factors, including how the drug is being administered and the age of the patient being treated. If the patient has any other existing conditions, such as liver disease, this can also affect the recommended dose. The oral dose is consistently the largest, followed by the nasal spray dosage and then the subcutaneous dosage. If the patient has liver disease the recommended maximum sumatriptan dose is cut in half.
Sumatriptan is a drug used for the treatment of migraines and cluster headaches. The drug works by narrowing the blood vessels thought to be responsible for the pain during migraines. It achieves this by stimulating the serotonin receptors in the brain, which in turn narrows the blood vessels. For this reason, patients should advise their doctors if they suffer from high blood pressure. A sumatriptan dose should only be taken during a migraine or cluster headache.
For an adult not suffering from any additional conditions, the ordinary oral sumatriptan dose is 25 milligrams (mg). The individual dosage can go up to a maximum of 100mg, and if the pain still persists after two hours, another dose of the drug can be taken. No more than 200mg of the drug should be taken orally over a day. The dosages for a cluster headache are exactly the same as those for migraines.
The drug is also available as a nasal spray, and the recommended sumatriptan dose drops when the drug is administered in this way. The initial dose should be between five and 20mg of the drug, and it may be repeated after two hours. A 10mg sumatriptan dose can be administered 5mg per nostril, but 5mg and 20mg doses should be taken in a single nostril.
Another possible form of administration of a sumatriptan dose is subcutaneously. Subcutaneous dosage means that it is injected just underneath the skin. The recommended dosage for migraines when the drug is administered subcutaneously is between 4 and 6mg. This can be repeated after one hour of the original dosage. The maximum daily dosage when using this method of administration is 12mg.
Children are not generally advised to take any sumatriptan dose, but if they were to take the drug, they could only do so using subcutaneous and intranasal methods of administration. The initial dosage of the drug is the same as for an adult using these methods, but the dosage cannot be repeated. Trials have also been conducted on subcutaneous dosages 0.06mg per kilogram (kg) in weight for children with overall success.