DePuy Synthes Companies today announced an exclusive agreement in the United States between DePuy Synthes Sales Inc. and Pacira Pharmaceuticals Inc. to co-promote EXPAREL, a long-lasting, non-opioid, local analgesic administered at the orthopedic surgical site. The agreement allows DePuy Synthes to promote EXPAREL across its joint reconstruction, spine, sports medicine, and trauma businesses to help with postsurgical patient pain. This will further enhance the company's portfolio and reach in the operating room while also helping hospital customers better achieve their Triple Aim goals of improving clinical outcomes, reducing costs and enhancing patient satisfaction.
 
Drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in the United States, with opioid addiction driving this epidemic, including more than 20,000 overdose deaths related to prescription pain relievers in 2015.¹ While opioids have typically been used for the management of orthopedic postsurgical pain, EXPAREL provides targeted, non-opioid pain control by working right at the site of surgery, allowing for long-lasting pain relief. Reduced pain allows the opportunity for earlier weight bearing and mobilization immediately following surgery, and more patients discharged to home rather than interim care facilities.
 
"There are millions of orthopedic procedures performed in the U.S. market today where we can improve patient care and the surgical experience by offering a long acting, intra-operatively delivered local anesthetic infiltration solution," said Juan-José Gonzalez, president of DePuy Synthes U.S. "As part of our focused approach to help bring value at every point along the care pathway, we are thrilled to be able to further our offerings through partnering with Pacira and together provide a differentiated solution for our customers to help improve patient outcomes."
 
DePuy Synthes has extensive reach in the orthopedics and spine space, positioning the company to bring EXPAREL to joint reconstruction, spine, sports medicine, and trauma patients in the United States for in-hospital and outpatient procedures.
 
DePuy Synthes is expected to begin co-promoting EXPAREL in the first quarter of 2017.

EXPAREL is a long acting local anesthetic indicated for single-dose infiltration into the surgical site to produce post-surgical analgesia. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration confirmed that EXPAREL has been approved for administration into the surgical site to produce postsurgical analgesia in a variety of surgeries.²
 
DePuy Synthes Companies, part of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies, provides one of the most comprehensive orthopedics portfolios in the world. DePuy Synthes Companies solutions, in specialties including joint reconstruction, trauma, craniomaxillofacial, spinal surgery and sports medicine, are designed to advance patient care while delivering clinical and economic value to health care systems worldwide.
 
References:
1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999-2015 on CDC WONDER Online Database, released December, 2016. Data are from the Multiple Cause of Death Files, 1999-2015, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. Accessed at http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucdicd10.html. 2010 were four times those in 1999.
2. http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=220759&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2122491