Pacira sinks on mixed Phase III nerve block data

Pacira Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:PCRX) slipped $6.05 (12%) to $42.65 on Tuesday after reporting mixed results from two Phase III studies of Exparel bupivacaine as a single-dose nerve block for prolonged regional analgesia.

In a study evaluating Exparel's effect during surgeries on upper extremities, the therapy met the primary endpoint of improving cumulative pain scores over 48 hours vs. placebo (p<0.0001). Exparel also met secondary endpoints measuring the compound's effect vs. placebo on postsurgical opioid consumption (p<0.0001), opioid-free subjects (p<0.01) and time to first opioid rescue (p<0.0001). The study evaluated Exparel as a brachial plexus block for patients undergoing one of two surgeries: total shoulder arthroplasty or rotator cuff repair. In a separate study in lower extremity surgeries, Exparel missed the primary endpoint of improving cumulative pain scores over 72 hours vs. placebo (p>0.05). The company attributed the miss to a "significant deviation from protocol" at a trial site...