Orofacial & Dental Implant Surgery Offers Novel Approach to Treating Postsurgical Pain With a Unique Non-Opioid Option

At Orofacial & Dental Implant Surgery we strive to provide patients with improved recovery after surgery, and offering the latest, unique advances in pain management helps us achieve our goal.

Orofacial & Dental Implant Surgery is one of the first hospitals in the region to adopt a novel approach to treating pain after surgery that may help patients take fewer opioid pain medications, which can cause drowsiness, nausea, and other, often serious, side effects. Minimizing exposure to opioids is also important due to the potential risk of long-term use.

As part of this novel approach, doctors at Orofacial & Dental Implant Surgery are treating patients with EXPAREL^® (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension), a long-acting, non-opioid, numbing medication that is administered during the surgical procedure. The numbing medication in EXPAREL, bupivacaine, is slowly released over time to provide long-lasting pain control for the first few days after surgery, when patients need it most. Because EXPAREL is given during the procedure, directly into the surgical area, patients may need fewer doses of other pain medications after surgery, including opioids. In fact, EXPAREL is proven to help patients use fewer opioids as they start their recovery.*

More than 8 million adult patients have received EXPAREL since 2012.

Remember that you have a say in how your pain is treated after surgery. If you are considering having surgery, we encourage you to speak with your doctor to learn about how our new postsurgical pain management program might be right for you. Click here for a Discussion Guide that can help you and your doctor set realistic expectations about what your recovery experience may be like.

*The clinical benefit of the decrease in opioid consumption was not demonstrated in the pivotal trials.

Indication

EXPAREL® (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension) is indicated for single-dose infiltration in patients aged 6 years and older to produce postsurgical local analgesia and in adults as an interscalene brachial plexus nerve block to produce postsurgical regional analgesia. Safety and efficacy have not been established in other nerve blocks.

Important Safety Information

EXPAREL® (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension) should not be used in obstetrical paracervical block anesthesia.

In studies in adults where EXPAREL was injected into a wound, the most common side effects were nausea, constipation, and vomiting.

In studies in adults where EXPAREL was injected near a nerve, the most common side effects were nausea, fever, and constipation.

In the study where EXPAREL was given to children, the most common side effects were nausea, vomiting, constipation, low blood pressure, low number of red blood cells, muscle twitching, blurred vision, itching, and rapid heartbeat.

EXPAREL can cause a temporary loss of feeling and/or loss of muscle movement. How much and how long the loss of feeling and/or muscle movement depends on where and how much of EXPAREL was injected and may last for up to 5 days.

EXPAREL is not recommended to be used in patients younger than 6 years old for injection into the wound, for patients younger than 18 years old for injection near a nerve, and/or in pregnant women.

Tell your health care provider if you or your child has liver disease, since this may affect how the active ingredient (bupivacaine) in EXPAREL is eliminated from the body.

EXPAREL should not be injected into the spine, joints, or veins.

The active ingredient in EXPAREL can affect the nervous system and the cardiovascular system; may cause an allergic reaction; may cause damage if injected into the joints; and can cause a rare blood disorder.

Please refer to the full Prescribing Information here.