4:30PM Pacira Pharma: Phase 4 IMPROVE publication fids EXPAREL-based multimodal analgesia reduces opioid use, adverse events and hospital stay following laparoscopic surgery (PCRX) 57.26 +1.43 : Co announced results from the IMPROVE study in laparoscopic colectomy. IMPROVE represents a series of open-label prospective Phase 4 clinical studies to assess the differences in postsurgical opioid use and health economic outcomes between patients receiving EXPAREL (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension) as the foundation of a multimodal analgesic regimen versus a standard opioid-based regimen for postsurgical pain control. The results were published in the January issue of Current Therapeutic Research.
The study evaluated 82 patients who underwent laparoscopic colectomy, a minimally invasive surgery to remove all or part of the colon using several small incisions in the abdomen. Compared to patients in the standard opioid-based treatment arm-who received intravenous (IV) opioids via patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) devices-patients undergoing the same procedure and receiving an EXPAREL-based multimodal regimen experienced:
A 64 mg reduction in mean opioid consumption (32 mg in the EXPAREL group compared with 96 mg in the IV opioid-based PCA group; P<0.0001)
A 1-day reduction in median length of hospital stay (3.0 days in the EXPAREL group compared with 4.0 days in the IV opioid-based PCA group; P=0.0019)
Significantly fewer opioid-related adverse events (ORAEs) (8 percent of patients in the EXPAREL group experienced ORAEs, compared with 41 percent of patients in the IV opioid-based PCA group; P=0.0019)
A $1,784 reduction in mean hospitalization costs ($11,234 in the EXPAREL group compared with $13,018 in the IV opioid-based PCA group)
