Beyond Headaches: New INFUSE Study Data Highlights Cognitive Relief in Migraine Patients

Migraine is not just a headache. It’s a full-body, brain-disrupting condition that affects how people think, work, and function daily.

Now, new data from H. Lundbeck A/S suggests something important: Treating migraine may also improve “brain fog” and cognitive symptoms—not just pain.

What the INFUSE Study Set Out to Explore?

Presented at the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) 2026 Annual Meeting, the INFUSE study focused on a neglected aspect of migraine:

Cognitive burden. Specifically, the study tracked:

• Patient-reported cognitive symptoms at baseline
• Changes after 6 months of treatment
• A difficult-to-treat population (patients who failed at least one anti-CGRP therapy)

This matters because: Cognition in migraine is common—but rarely measured systematically.

The Hidden Burden: Cognitive Symptoms in Migraine

Before treatment, patients reported high levels of cognitive impairment:

• 82.1% experienced brain fog
• 64.7% struggled with decision-making
• 62.6% had difficulty with complex tasks
• 60.0% reported reading comprehension issues

These are not minor inconveniences. They affect:

• Work productivity
• Daily functioning
• Social interactions

As Amaal Starling explains: “Brain fog can be profoundly disruptive, affecting work, family life, and everyday experiences.”

The Intervention: eptinezumab

The study evaluated patients treated with eptinezumab, marketed as VYEPTI. Key characteristics:

• Targets CGRP (a key migraine pathway)
• Delivered via IV infusion
• Administered once every 3 months

What Changed After 6 Months?

The results are hard to ignore. After two doses of eptinezumab:

• >50% of patients reported improvement across all major cognitive symptoms
• Improvements were seen in:
  • Brain fog
  • Decision-making
  • Reading comprehension
  • Complex task execution

Even more interesting: Some improvements appeared as early as Day 7. That’s unusually fast for preventive migraine therapies.

Why This Is a Big Deal?

Most migraine treatments are evaluated using:

• Monthly migraine days (MMD)
• Headache frequency

But this study shifts the lens: From pain metrics → to quality-of-life metrics

According to Damian Fiore:

• Real-world data like INFUSE helps guide better treatment decisions
• Cognitive symptoms should be part of standard evaluation

Translation: The definition of “treatment success” is evolving.

Real-World Evidence: The Missing Piece

INFUSE is not a controlled clinical trial. It’s a prospective, real-world study, which means:

• Data comes directly from patients
• Collected digitally over time
• Reflects actual clinical use

Study design highlights:

• 12-month duration
• Data collected at baseline, Day 7, and months 3, 6, 9, 12
• Focus on patients with prior treatment failures

This makes the findings more applicable to: Everyday clinical practice—not just ideal trial settings.

Supporting Clinical Evidence for Eptinezumab

Eptinezumab is not new. Its efficacy and safety were established in:

• PROMISE-1 (episodic migraine)
• PROMISE-2 (chronic migraine)

Key outcomes:

• Reduced monthly migraine days
• Favorable safety profile
• Low discontinuation rates (~1.9%)

Common side effects include:

• Nasopharyngitis
• Hypersensitivity

The Bigger Shift in Migraine Care

This data reinforces a broader trend: Migraine treatment is moving beyond symptom suppression to holistic management.

That includes:

• Cognitive function
• Emotional well-being
• Daily productivity

And importantly: Patient-reported outcomes are gaining weight in decision-making.

Final Take

The INFUSE study does something simple—but powerful: It listens to patients.

And what patients are saying is clear:

• Migraine affects how they think, not just how they feel
• Cognitive symptoms matter
• Improvements in brain function are meaningful

If replicated at scale, this could reshape how migraine therapies are evaluated.

Not just: “Did the headache go away?”

But: “Did life get better?”