What is Exparel?
Anesthetics (numbing medicines) block nerve impulses within your body.Exparel can be used to numb a specific area of your body before a minor surgical procedure, such as bunions or hemorrhoids.After surgery on the shoulder or upper arm area, Exparel can be used to relieve pain in that area.
Side effects of Exparel
If you experience any of the following symptoms of an allergic reaction: hives or red rash; sneezing; difficulty breathing; severe nausea; or severe dizziness,
After receiving Exparel, you will be closely monitored to ensure that you don't have a reaction. If you experience any of the following signs, contact your healthcare provider immediately.
- Ringing in the ears
- Feeling drowsy, restless, or anxious.
- Feeling like you might pass out;
- A metallic taste in the mouth or problems with speech and vision
- You may feel tingling or numbness around your mouth.
- Feeling short of breath or feeling hot or cold if you have a fast or slow rate of heart
- Tremors, twitching, and mood changes
- Continued numbness or weakness where the medication was injected.
- You may experience joint stiffness, pain, or even weakness in any part of your body months after surgery.
After a bupivacaine treatment, you may feel numb for 5 days or not be able to move that area.
Common Exparel side-effects include:
- Nausea, vomiting;
- Constipation
There may be other side effects. For medical advice on side effects, call your doctor. The FDA can be contacted at 1-800-FDA-1088 to report side effects.
Warnings
You may feel numb for up to five days after Exparel treatment.Tell your doctor if, before receiving Exparel, you have liver or heart disease, a heart rhythm problem, or a history of seizures.Tell your doctor if any numbing medication has caused an allergic reaction.After receiving Exparel, you will be closely monitored to ensure that you don't have a reaction. If you experience joint pain, stiffness, or weakness after surgery or even months later, call your doctor.
Before you take this drug
If you have an allergy to bupivacaine, you should not use Exparel.
Tell your doctor about any of the following:
- An allergic reaction to any type of numbing medication;
- Liver disease
- Kidney disease
- Heart disease
- A heart rhythm disorder,
This medicine is not known to harm a baby in utero. Inform your doctor if you are pregnant.You may not be able to breastfeed your baby if you are taking this medication. You should ask your doctor if there are any risks.
How to take Exparel?
Exparel injections are given into the area around your surgical incision. This injection will be given in a surgical or hospital setting.Exparel may have delayed or long-lasting effects. Tell any doctor or dental professional who treats you about your recent Exparel treatment for at least four days (96 hours) following surgery.If you experience joint discomfort, stiffness, or weakness after surgery or even several months later, call your doctor.
Details on dosage
Adult dose for pain:
Local Analgesia via Infiltration:
The dose will depend on the size of the surgical site, how much volume is required to cover an area, and any patient-specific factors that could impact safety.
Maximum infiltration dose: 266 mg (20 mL)
Regional Analgesia using Interscalene Brachial Plexus Nerve Block:
Based on a study of patients who underwent total shoulder arthroplasty (or rotator-cuff repair): 133 mg (10mg).
Maximum dose for interscalene brachial plexus nerve block: 133 mg (10 mg)
Comments:
This drug is not approved for intravascular, intra-articular, or regional nerve blocks other than the interscalene Brachial Plexus Nerve Block.
Different formulations of bupivacaine do not have bioequivalence.
Uses: as a single-dose infiltration for postsurgical analgesia and as a nerve block of the interscalene brachial plexus to produce regional analgesia after surgery.
What happens if I miss the dose?
Exparel does not require a daily dosage schedule because it is only used in a single dose.
What happens if I overdose?
Overdoses are unlikely because this medication is administered by a health professional in a medical environment.
What should be avoided?
Avoid using any pain relievers or numbing medications that contain lidocaine for at least four days (96 hours) following surgery. Skin patches, sprays, or creams can be used. Please follow your doctor's advice.
Interaction with other drug
Other drugs, such as prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal products, may also interact with bupivacaine. Inform your doctor of all the medicines you are currently taking and those that you will begin or stop using.
