Liposomal Bupivacaine vs Ropivacaine for Post-hemorrhoidectomy Analgesia

August 26, 2026 updated by: Liu Xiaona, Tongliao City People's Hospital

Liposomal Bupivacaine Versus Ropivacaine for Wound Infiltration Analgesia After Milligan-Morgan Open Hemorrhoidectomy: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This is a single-center, prospective, randomized, double-blind controlled trial comparing the analgesic efficacy, quality of recovery, and safety of perianal wound infiltration with multivesicular liposomal bupivacaine (266 mg) versus ropivacaine hydrochloride (200 mg) in patients undergoing Milligan-Morgan open hemorrhoidectomy under spinal anesthesia. Both solutions are diluted to a total volume of 30 mL and infiltrated at six predefined perianal positions at the end of surgery. The primary outcome is the resting visual analog scale (VAS) pain score at 24 hours after surgery. Secondary outcomes include resting and movement-evoked VAS pain scores at 4, 6, 12, 24, and 48 hours, cumulative rescue analgesic consumption during postoperative days 1-3, Quality of Recovery-40 (QoR-40) scores on postoperative days 1-3, and adverse events within 72 hours after surgery.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Milligan-Morgan open hemorrhoidectomy is associated with substantial postoperative pain due to rich somatic innervation of the perianal region, wound exposure, anal sphincter spasm, and stimulation during defecation. Optimizing postoperative analgesia is critical for enhanced recovery. Local wound infiltration with ropivacaine is commonly used but provides limited duration of analgesia. Liposomal bupivacaine, formulated with a multivesicular liposomal delivery system, enables sustained release of bupivacaine at the injection site and may prolong local analgesia. However, high-quality comparative evidence between liposomal bupivacaine and ropivacaine for wound infiltration after open hemorrhoidectomy remains limited.

This single-center, prospective, randomized, double-blind controlled trial enrolled patients aged 18-60 years with grade III-IV internal hemorrhoids or mixed hemorrhoids scheduled for elective Milligan-Morgan open hemorrhoidectomy at Tongliao People's Hospital between November 2025 and May 2026. Patients were randomized 1:1 to receive perianal wound infiltration with either 266 mg of liposomal bupivacaine or 200 mg of ropivacaine hydrochloride, both diluted to 30 mL with normal saline and divided into six 5-mL aliquots infiltrated at six predefined perianal clock-face positions. All patients received spinal anesthesia with 15 mg of 0.5% hyperbaric bupivacaine. Rescue analgesia with oral diclofenac sodium 50 mg was provided when VAS pain score was ≥4.

The primary outcome is resting VAS pain score at 24 hours postoperatively. Secondary outcomes include resting and movement-evoked VAS pain scores at 4, 6, 12, 24, and 48 hours, cumulative diclofenac sodium consumption during postoperative days 1-3, QoR-40 total scores on postoperative days 1-3, and adverse events (nausea and vomiting, rash, lower-extremity numbness or weakness, local anesthetic systemic toxicity, perianal hematoma, surgical-site infection) within 72 hours.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

140

Phase

  • 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 Backup

Study Locations

  • China
    • Tongliao
      • Neimeng, Tongliao, China, 028000
        • Tongliao People's Hospital
        • Contact:

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • 1. Aged 18-60 years, irrespective of sex 2. Diagnosed with grade III-IV internal hemorrhoids or mixed hemorrhoids based on specialist examination and scheduled to undergo elective Milligan-Morgan open hemorrhoidectomy 3. American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status I-III 4. Body mass index (BMI) of 18.0-30.0 kg/m² 5. Able to understand and complete the pain and quality-of-recovery assessments and willing to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Concomitant chronic low back or leg pain, anal fissure, perianal abscess, or other persistent painful conditions 2. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, or plans to become pregnant in the near future 3. Known allergy to bupivacaine, ropivacaine, or any other medication used during the study 4. Long-term regular use of opioids or use of analgesic medications within 48 hours before surgery 5. Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome or severe cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, or pulmonary disease considered to significantly increase risks associated with neuraxial anesthesia or postoperative analgesia 6. Psychiatric or cognitive impairment that precludes completion of study assessments 7. Any other condition that, in the investigator's judgment, renders the patient unsuitable for participation

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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: Sequential Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Liposomal Bupivacaine Group
Patients receive perianal wound infiltration with 266 mg of multivesicular liposomal bupivacaine (20 mL) diluted with 10 mL normal saline to a total volume of 30 mL. The 30-mL solution is divided into six 5-mL aliquots and evenly infiltrated at six predefined perianal clock-face positions along the wound margins and adjacent tissues immediately after completion of surgery.
Drug: Liposomal Bupivacaine (EXPAREL®)/Bupivacaine
266 mg (20 mL) diluted with 10 mL normal saline to total 30 mL; infiltrated at six perianal positions at end of surgery
Active Comparator: Ropivacaine Group
Patients receive perianal wound infiltration with 200 mg of ropivacaine hydrochloride (20 mL) diluted with 10 mL normal saline to a total volume of 30 mL. The 30-mL solution is divided into six 5-mL aliquots and evenly infiltrated at six predefined perianal clock-face positions along the wound margins and adjacent tissues immediately after completion of surgery.
Drug: Ropivacaine Hydrochloride
200 mg (20 mL) diluted with 10 mL normal saline to total 30 mL; infiltrated at six perianal positions at end of surgery

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Resting visual analog scale (VAS) pain score
Time Frame: 48 hours after surgery
Pain intensity at rest assessed using a 10-cm VAS, with 0 indicating no pain and 10 indicating the worst imaginable pain.
48 hours after surgery

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Resting and movement-evoked VAS pain scores
Time Frame: 4, 6, 12, 24, and 48 hours after surgery
Pain intensity at rest and during movement assessed using a 10-cm VAS at predefined postoperative time points.
4, 6, 12, 24, and 48 hours after surgery
Cumulative rescue analgesic consumption
Time Frame: Postoperative days 1-3 (within 72 hours)
Cumulative dose of oral diclofenac sodium (mg) consumed as rescue analgesia when VAS pain score ≥4. Maximum daily dose 150 mg, minimum interval 8 hours
Postoperative days 1-3 (within 72 hours)
Quality of Recovery-40 (QoR-40) total score
Time Frame: Postoperative days 1, 2, and 3
The QoR-40 comprises 40 items across five dimensions (physical comfort, emotional state, physical independence, psychological support, and pain). Total scores range from 40 to 200, with higher scores indicating better postoperative recovery.
Postoperative days 1, 2, and 3
Incidence of adverse events
Time Frame: Within 72 hours after surgery
Adverse events including nausea and vomiting, rash, lower-extremity numbness or weakness, local anesthetic systemic toxicity, perianal hematoma, and surgical-site infection
Within 72 hours after surgery

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Tongliao City People's Hospital

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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)

August 30, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

September 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

September 30, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

August 26, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 26, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

August 31, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 31, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 26, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • TongliaoCPH
  • 337087 (Registry Identifier: China Clinical Trial Registration Center)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

The datasets generated during this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request by email.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

Following publication of the primary manuscript

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

Reasonable request by email to the corresponding author

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • SAP
  • ICF
  • ANALYTIC_CODE
  • CSR

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

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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