[April 09, 2012]

Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Announces Commercial Availability of EXPAREL®

Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: PCRX) today announced the commercial launch of EXPAREL^® (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension) in the United States. Starting today, EXPAREL will begin shipping to hospital and ambulatory care customers through their normal wholesaler and distributor channels. EXPAREL was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in October 2011 for administration into the surgical site to produce postsurgical analgesia.

Strong pre-launch commercialization efforts including more than 40 data publications and more than 1,700 interactions with potential customers have laid the groundwork for what Pacira believes will be the successful introduction of EXPAREL into the hospital marketplace.

"For Pacira, today is the culmination of several important organizational milestones that span the last several years, with the most significant being the FDA approval of EXPAREL," said Dave Stack, president and CEO of Pacira Pharmaceuticals. "For the millions of patients undergoing surgical procedures in the U.S. each year, the introduction of EXPAREL-a single-dose, non-opioid local analgesic given at the close of surgery-represents a significant addition to the armamentarium of currently available options to manage postsurgical pain."

The Pacira sales force, which consists of 63 hospital specialists who cover more than 81 percent of the market Pacira is targeting for EXPAREL, was launched in January 2012. Since that time, this team has been executing a formulary access strategy, working closely with key hospital and surgical customers to initiate the formulary review process to obtain access for EXPAREL.

"Through the work of our field force and the commercialization activities executed to date, awareness and anticipated demand for EXPAREL has continued to grow among our target markets," said Taunia Markvicka, PharmD, vice president, commercial. "We intend to build off that momentum through a targeted strategy in 2012 that encompasses Phase 4 clinical research, partnerships with key hospital customers and robust publication and medical education plans."

About Pacira

Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: PCRX) is an emerging specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the clinical and commercial developmentof new products that meet the needs of acute care practitioners and their patients. The company's current emphasis is the development of non-opioid products for postsurgical pain control, and its lead product, EXPAREL^® (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension), was approved for administration into the surgical site to produce postsurgical analgesia by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in October 2011. EXPAREL and two other commercially available products utilize the Pacira proprietary product delivery technology DepoFoam^®, a unique platform that encapsulates drugs without altering their molecular structure and then releases them over a desired period of time. Additional information about Pacira is available at www.pacira.com.

About EXPAREL^®

EXPAREL^® (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension) is indicated for administration into the surgical site to produce postsurgical analgesia. The product combines bupivacaine with DepoFoam^®, a proven product delivery technology that delivers medication over a desired time period. EXPAREL represents the first and only multivesicular liposome local anesthetic that can be utilized in the peri- or postsurgical setting in the same fashion as current local anesthetics. By utilizing the DepoFoam platform, a single dose of EXPAREL delivers bupivacaine over time, providing analgesia with reduced opioid requirements for up to 72 hours. Pivotal studies have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of EXPAREL in patients undergoing bunionectomy or hemorrhoidectomy procedures and additional studies are underway to further demonstrate the safety and efficacy in other procedures. Additional information is available at www.EXPAREL.com.

Important Safety Information

EXPAREL is contraindicated in obstetrical paracervical block anesthesia. EXPAREL has not been studied for use in patients younger than 18 years of age. Non-bupivacaine-based local anesthetics, including lidocaine, may cause an immediate release of bupivacaine from EXPAREL if administered together locally. The administration of EXPAREL may follow the administration of lidocaine after a delay of 20 minutes or more. Other formulations of bupivacaine should not be administered within 96 hours following administration of EXPAREL. Monitoring of cardiovascular and neurological status, as well as vital signs should be performed during and after injection of EXPAREL as with other local anesthetic products. Because amide-type local anesthetics, such as bupivacaine, are metabolized by the liver, EXPAREL should be used cautiously in patients with hepatic disease. Patients with severe hepatic disease, because of their inability to metabolize local anesthetics normally, are at a greater risk of developing toxic plasma concentrations. In clinical trials, the most common adverse reactions (incidence greater-than or equal to 10%) following EXPAREL administration were nausea, constipation, and vomiting.

Please see the full Prescribing Information for more details available at www.EXPAREL.com.

Forward Looking Statements

Any statements in this press release about our future expectations, plans and prospects, including statements about EXPAREL's potential and the expected timing of commercial launch, expected 2012 revenues and other statements containing the words "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including risks relating to: the success of our sales and manufacturing efforts in support of the commercial launch of EXPAREL; the rate and degree of market acceptance of EXPAREL; the size and growth of the potential markets for EXPAREL and our ability to serve those markets; our commercialization and marketing capabilities; and other factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2011 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 27, 2012, and in other filings that we periodically make with the SEC (News - Alert). In addition, the forward-looking statements included in this press release represent our views as of the date of this press release. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause our views to change. However, while we may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we specifically disclaim any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

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