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EU Commission approves Dexdor for sedation of patients in Intensive Care Pain Management Page

European Commission has granted Dexdor (dexmedetomidine) from Orion, centralised approval covering 27 European Union countries for sedation of adult intensive care unit patients requiring a level of sedation not deeper than arousal in response to verbal stimulation. The company plans to begin a European launch in Germany and Austria in early 2012. It will launch much later in other European countries. The drug is marketed outside the EU as Precedex by Hospira under licence from Orion.

Exparel is FDA approved for Post Surgical Analgesia Pain Management Page

Exparel(bupivacaine extended-release liposome injection),a non-opioid local analgesic, is FDA approved for post-surgical analgesia. Exparel provides analgesia for several days with a single intraoperative infiltration. The approval is based on a trial that showed a larger percentage of patients treated with Exparel avoided opioid rescue medication during the first 24 hours after surgery compared to placebo,,7% versus 1%. Exparel combines bupivacaine with DepoFoam drug delivery technology from Pacira Pharma.

Lexapro/Cipralex (Forest Labs/Lundbeck) reduces Pain in opiod-dependent patients Pain Management Page

Opioid-dependent patients treated with Lexapro/Cipralex (escitalopram), from Forest Labs and Lundbeck, experience meaningful reductions in pain severity and pain interference during the first three months of therapy, according to a study published in Pain. Among methadone-treated patients, estimates of chronic pain prevalence range between 37-61 percent. Management of pain in opioid-dependent patients is a clinical challenge given concerns for opioid abuse and misuse among individuals with prior substance use disorders. Yet unresolved pain may be a risk factor for relapse among patients whose pain is not fully treated. The study, led by Judith Tsui, MD, MPH, assistant professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine, evaluated the effects of Lexapro/Cipralex on treatment retention in patients with depressive symptoms who were initiating buprenorphine/naloxone for treatment of opioid dependence. Participants were randomized to receive 10 m.g. of Lexapro/Cipralex or a placebo daily. Changes in pain severity, pain interference and depression were assessed at one, two and three-month visits with the visual analog scale, Brief Pain Inventory, and the Beck Depression Inventory II, respectively. Treatment resulted in significantly decreased pain severity and interference over time, with a nearly 30 percent reduction in pain severity after one month compared to control. The study suggested that the analgesic properties of Lexapro/Cipralex were independent of its antidepressant effects. (See: Pain, Volume 152, Issue 11, Pages 2447-2672)

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