Brand Name for Acetaminophen 250mg + Aspirin 250mg + Caffeine 65mg
Yes, this specific combination is marketed under the brand name Excedrin (and previously as Excedrin Migraine or Excedrin Extra Strength in the United States).
Clinical Context
This fixed-dose combination of acetaminophen 250 mg, aspirin 250 mg, and caffeine 65 mg (AAC) has strong evidence supporting its use for acute migraine treatment and is now formally recommended in major clinical guidelines.
Guideline Support
The 2024 VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guideline provides a "strong for" recommendation for aspirin-acetaminophen-caffeine in treating acute migraine 1. The 2025 American College of Physicians guideline similarly endorses this combination as part of first-line therapy for moderate to severe episodic migraine 2.
Evidence Basis
The combination demonstrates:
- Number needed to treat of 9 for pain freedom at 2 hours
- Number needed to treat of 4 for pain relief at 2 hours 1
- Significantly superior to ibuprofen for pain relief, with meaningful relief occurring 20 minutes faster (median time difference) 3
- Well-tolerated profile with only mild adverse events consistent with individual components (aspirin dyspepsia, caffeine-related nervousness) 1
Clinical Utility
This combination is particularly valuable because:
- It provides faster onset of action compared to single-agent NSAIDs
- The caffeine component enhances analgesic efficacy through multiple mechanisms
- It's appropriate for patients who cannot tolerate or have contraindications to triptans
- Cost-effective over-the-counter option 2, 1
Important caveat: Patients should be counseled about medication overuse headache risk when using this or any acute migraine treatment more than 15 days per month 2.