DALLAS—Results of an independent, physician-initiated study designed to evaluate the difference in postsurgical pain and opioid consumption between patients who received Exparel (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension) versus a multi-drug analgesic cocktail for pain management following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) were presented at the 24th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons. Researchers found that patients treated with Exparel reported significantly lower patient-perceived pain scores and morphine sulfate equivalence consumption, and reported higher satisfaction with pain control and overall experience compared with patients who received the multi-drug analgesic cocktail.
“A majority of patients who undergo total knee arthroplasty report dissatisfaction with overall pain control and side effects associated with narcotic medications, so there is clearly a need for a more effective and better-tolerated pain management option,” said Mark A. Snyder, MD, Director of the Orthopaedic Center of Excellence at Good Samaritan Hospital in Cincinnati.
Mark A. Snyder, MD
In the double-blind, randomized clinical study, 70 patients who underwent a TKA were randomly assigned to receive either a periarticular injection with Exparel or a multi-drug analgesic cocktail for postsurgical analgesia.
Findings showed that compared with patients who received the multi-drug analgesic cocktail, patients who received EXPAREL reported:
• Significantly lower pain levels on post-op days one and two.
• Higher satisfaction in pain control and overall experience.
• Significantly fewer adverse events.
• Significantly lower total morphine equivalency consumption in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) and by post-op day two.
“Our study found that Exparel not only provided effective pain control, but also reduced opioid load and improved the patient’s overall experience. In addition, we found that Exparel eliminated the incidence of post-operative falls, a serious patient safety risk resulting from muscle weakness associated with nerve blocks and prolonged indwelling pain catheters, and confusion or disorientation caused by opioids,” stated Dr. Snyder.
Exparel is marketed by Pacira Pharmaceuticals Inc, in Parsippany, New Jersey.