Bupivacaine and meloxicam (HTX-011) in a fixed-dose combination is in development for the management of post-operative pain. Post-operative pain is a typical example of acute pain. Acute pain typically lasts for less than 3-6 months (unlike chronic pain which carries on for longer than 12 weeks), and is provoked by identifiable stimuli and disappears as soon as the tissue injury or damage that had caused it is healed. All surgical procedures are associated with a certain level of post-operative pain. Opioids are often used to manage post-operative pain but carry the risk of harmful side effects, abuse and addiction.
In HTX-011, the inclusion of low-dose meloxicam reduces local inflammation and reverses the acidic environment caused by surgery, allowing enhanced penetration of bupivacaine (a local anaesthetic) into the nerves and thereby increasing its effect. HTX-011 is in development for application into the surgical site and early studies have shown its potential to reduce severe post-operative pain and the need for opioid analgesics for up to 72 hours. If licensed, HTX-011 may offer an additional treatment option for the management of post-operative pain with a potential to reduce the need for opioids.
Drugs
March 2019
Tanezumab is in clinical development for the treatment of moderate to severe chronic pain associated with osteoarthritis and chronic low back pain. Pain is an unpleasant sensory experience associated with damage to body tissues due to an injury, physical pressure, or inflammation of some part of the body. Chronic pain is persistent or recurrent and lasts for longer than 12 weeks. Moderate pain interferes significantly with daily living activities, and severe pain is disabling and causes an inability to perform daily living activities. Effective long-term treatment options for managing moderate to severe chronic pain are limited. Currently available pain medicines like opioids and analgesics may increase the risks of addiction, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular and renal problems.