Patent ID: 11918688
Assignee: PACIRA PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
Field: Pharmaceuticals (Chemistry)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 17:
18. A method of reducing hip pain in a subject, the method comprising administering to the subject a pharmaceutical composition comprising multivesicular liposomes encapsulating bupivacaine phosphate, said multivesicular liposomes comprising:
bupivacaine or a salt thereof;
phosphoric acid;
a lipid component comprising at least one amphipathic lipid and at least one neutral lipid lacking a hydrophilic head group; and,
optionally, a cholesterol and/or a plant sterol wherein said multivesicular liposomes are made by a process comprising:
a) preparing a first aqueous component comprising phosphoric acid;
b) preparing a lipid component comprising at least one organic solvent, at least one amphipathic lipid, and at least one neutral lipid lacking a hydrophilic head group;
c) mixing said first aqueous component and said lipid component to form a water-in-oil emulsion, wherein at least one component comprises bupivacaine or a salt thereof;
d) mixing said water-in-oil emulsion with a second aqueous component to form solvent spherules; and
e) removing the organic solvent from the solvent spherules to form multivesicular liposomes encapsulating bupivacaine phosphate, wherein the pharmaceutical composition is administered by needle injection, wherein the needle tip is located at a distal end of an injection needle and the needle is advanced using an in-plane mode of insertion relative to an imaging transducer, and wherein administering the composition occurs while the needle tip is located lateral to the psoas tendon such that the needle tip is positioned between the anterior inferior iliac spine and psoas tendon.