Post Operative Infusion Pump Pain Study

January 19, 2026 updated by: Charles Gatt, MD, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Continuous Infusion Pump Versus Single Shot Peripheral Block for Pain Management After Same-day Orthopaedic Surgery

This study will be a pragmatic, prospective cluster randomized trial, where clusters will formed based on sequential 2 week time increments across the study recruitment period.. Patients 18 years or older undergoing ACL reconstruction, open shoulder labrum or rotator cuff surgery, arthroscopic rotator cuff repair, proximal or distal patellar realignment surgery, open knee arthrotomy cases (i.e. inside out meniscus repair, osteochondral allograft transplantation (OCA), meniscal allograft transplantation (MAT)) at University Center for Ambulatory Surgery, LLC (UOA) will be reviewed for eligibility. Once identified, potential study subjects will be asked whether they are interested in participating in the project. If the patient agrees, the subject will be given the informed consent to read and sign.

Objectives: The primary objective is to compare the effectiveness of postoperative infusion pain pump versus preoperative nerve block in reducing visual analog pain scores/numerical pain rating scale (VAS/NPRS) in the postoperative period. The second objective is to evaluate the requirement of narcotic and non-narcotic analgesic medications between the two groups.

Hypotheses: Use of continuous infusion pain pump or single shot peripheral block will result in similar post-operative pain control after outpatient sports medicine surgical cases.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
80

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • New Jersey
      • Somerset, New Jersey, United States, 08873
        • Recruiting
        • University Center for Ambulatory Surgery

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 18 years or older
  • ACL reconstruction
  • Open shoulder labrum or rotator cuff surgery
  • Arthroscopic rotator cuff repair
  • Proximal or distal patellar realignment surgery
  • Open knee arthrotomy cases - Inside out meniscus repair, OCA, MAT

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Age under 18 years
  • Body mass index of greater than 40 kg/m2
  • American Society of Anesthesiologist class 4 physical status or greater
  • History of drug or alcohol abuse
  • Chronic opioid use/pain management doctor
  • Allergy to bupivacaine, ropivacaine or pharmacologic analogs
  • Any coagulation disorders
  • Existing nerve injury
  • Severe bronchopulmonary disease
  • Pregnant patients

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Sequential Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Post-Operative: Continuous ropivacaine via Ambit pump
Postoperatively, infusion pump reservoirs will contain 0.20% ropivacaine and infused via the Ambit pump (8cc/hr for knees, 6cc/hr for shoulders).
Drug: Bupivacaine 0.5% Injectable Solution

Preoperatively, a nerve block consisting of 0.5% bupivacaine will be given to ALL patients

  • A bolus of 20cc will be used for saphenous nerve blocks for knee surgeries
  • A bolus of 15cc will be used for interscalene nerve blocks for shoulder surgeries
Drug: Ropivacaine 0.2% Injectable Solution
Post-operative continuous infusion
Device: ambIT Infusion Pump
A pain pump provides intermittent delivery of medication to manage post-surgery pain.
Active Comparator: Pre-Operative: Liposomal bupivacaine (Exparel)
A single-shot of Liposomal Bupivicaine (Exparel) will be administered pre-operatively
Drug: Bupivacaine 0.5% Injectable Solution

Preoperatively, a nerve block consisting of 0.5% bupivacaine will be given to ALL patients

  • A bolus of 20cc will be used for saphenous nerve blocks for knee surgeries
  • A bolus of 15cc will be used for interscalene nerve blocks for shoulder surgeries
Drug: 1.3% liposomal bupivacaine (Exparel)
Pre-operative infiltrative of 10cc of 1.3% liposomal bupivacaine (Exparel)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
The effectiveness of postoperative infusion pain pump versus preoperative nerve block in reducing visual analog pain scores/numerical pain rating scale (VAS/NPRS) in the postoperative period
Time Frame: Postoperative days 0, 1,2,3,4,7,10, 14
Compare the effectiveness of postoperative infusion pain pump versus preoperative nerve block in reducing visual analog pain scores/numerical pain rating scale (VAS/NPRS) in the postoperative period. NPRS score difference of approximately 1.5 +/- 1 (approximately 2 points) to detect clinically significant difference in pain score.
Postoperative days 0, 1,2,3,4,7,10, 14

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Evaluate the requirement of narcotic and non-narcotic analgesic medications between the two groups
Time Frame: Postoperative period through day 14
use of narcotic and other analgesic pain medication throughout the 14 day postoperative period
Postoperative period through day 14
Safety Outcomes
Time Frame: Postoperative period through day 14
Evaluate the rates of catheter site infection, extravasation, pump malfunction
Postoperative period through day 14

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 30, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 31, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
January 15, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 15, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
January 20, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 21, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 19, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • Pro2022000405

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

All of the individual participant data collected during the trail, after deidentification.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

Immediately following publication. No end date.

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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