June 18 (Reuters) - AbbVie ( ABBV ) said on Wednesday

its migraine drug met the main goal and was superior to a widely

used generic treatment in a head-to head late-stage trial.

The U.S. drugmaker has been expanding and banking on its

neuroscience portfolio after its blockbuster arthritis drug

Humira began facing competition from several less expensive

biosimilar versions.

The study's main goal was for the company's drug Qulipta,

also known as Aquipta in Europe, to show a lower discontinuation

rate due to undesired effect from the treatment than topiramate.

Qulipta was stopped in 12.1% of patients, compared to 29.6%

for the generic at 24 weeks.

The European Medicines Agency's safety committee had in 2023

recommended pregnant women not use topiramate-containing

medicines to prevent migraine or manage their body weight as

their newborns could have a higher risk of neurodevelopmental

disorders.

AbbVie's ( ABBV ) study also met all secondary goals, with 64.1%

patients on Qulipta seeing a 50% or more reduction in the

average number of days per month when they experience migraine

headaches. In comparison, 39.3% patients on topiramate saw a

similar reduction.

Qulipta, first approved in the United States in 2021,

brought in $658 million in international sales last year.