Exparel and Dexamethasone

June 1, 2026 updated by: Duke University

The Power Couple of Regional Analgesia? A Prospective Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Block Duration With Liposomal Bupivacaine and Dexamethasone

This prospective randomized clinical trial evaluates the duration of sensory blockade in patients undergoing shoulder surgery receiving interscalene brachial plexus blocks with either liposomal bupivacaine alone or liposomal bupivacaine combined with dexamethasone.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet 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

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:

  1. Adults aged 18 to 80 years
  2. ASA physical status 1-3
  3. Undergoing primary shoulder surgery with interscalene nerve block

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. ASA 4 or 5
  2. Revision shoulder surgery
  3. Daily chronic opioid use (over 3 months of continuous opioid use)
  4. Inability to communicate pain scores or need for analgesia
  5. Infection at the site of block placement
  6. Age under 18 years old or greater than 80 years old
  7. Pregnant women (as determined by point-of-care serum bHCG)
  8. Intolerance/allergy to local anesthetics
  9. Weight <50 kg
  10. BMI > 40
  11. severe pulmonary disease including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and restrictive lung disease
  12. Suspected, or known addiction to or abuse of illicit drug(s), prescription medicine(s), or alcohol within the past 2 years.
  13. Uncontrolled anxiety, schizophrenia, or other psychiatric disorder that, in the opinion of the investigator, may interfere with study assessments or compliance.
  14. Current or historical evidence of any clinically significant disease or condition that, in the opinion of the investigator, may increase the risk of surgery or complicate the subject's postoperative course.

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: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

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.
Active Comparator: Liposomal Bupivacaine Alone
Participants receive an interscalene brachial plexus nerve block consisting of 10 mL liposomal bupivacaine (133 mg) combined with 20 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine. This regimen represents standard of care for prolonged regional analgesia in shoulder surgery.
Drug: Liposomal Bupivacaine with Bupivacaine
Administration of an interscalene brachial plexus nerve block using 10 mL liposomal bupivacaine (133 mg) and 20 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine for postoperative analgesia following shoulder surgery.
Experimental: Liposomal Bupivacaine + Dexamethasone
Participants receive an interscalene brachial plexus nerve block consisting of 10 mL liposomal bupivacaine (133 mg) combined with 20 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine and 6 mg preservative-free dexamethasone. This arm evaluates whether the addition of dexamethasone prolongs sensory blockade duration compared to liposomal bupivacaine alone.
Drug: Liposomal Bupivacaine with Bupivacaine
Administration of an interscalene brachial plexus nerve block using 10 mL liposomal bupivacaine (133 mg) and 20 mL of 0.5% bupivacaine for postoperative analgesia following shoulder surgery.
Drug: Dexamethasone
6 mg preservative-free dexamethasone

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
time until resolution of sensory block
Time Frame: 0-10 days
Patients will be called daily until resolution of their sensory block
0-10 days

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
duration of motor blockade
Time Frame: 2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively
2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively
opioid consumption (in oral morphine equivalents)
Time Frame: 2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively
2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively
known side effects of interscalene blocks
Time Frame: 2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively
2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively
pain scores (scale of 0-10)
Time Frame: 2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively
Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS): A score of 0 means "no pain," and 10 means "the worst pain imaginable
2, 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, and 96 hours postoperatively

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.
Duke University

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Emily Hall, Duke University

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 (Estimated)

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.
August 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.
August 1, 2027

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.
September 1, 2027

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).
May 22, 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.
May 22, 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.
May 29, 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.
June 3, 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.
June 1, 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.
May 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.
  • PRO00119364

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

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.

Clinical Trials on Postoperative Pain

Clinical Trials on Liposomal Bupivacaine with Bupivacaine

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings