Claims for Patent: 8,623,920

Summary for Patent: 8,623,920

Title:	Method of treating post-surgical acute pain
Abstract:	A method is provided for treating pain in patients recovering from post-surgical trauma by administering between about 13 to about 30 mg of diclofenac potassium in a liquid dispersible formulation over a period of at least 24 hours, wherein the daily total amount of diclofenac potassium administered is less than or equal to about 100 mg. The method is particularly useful in treating acute pain in bunionectomy patients.
Inventor(s):	Kowalski; Mark M. (Winchester, MA), Young; James L. (Valley Park, MO), Moore; Keith A. (Loveland, OH)
Assignee:	Depomed, Inc. (Newark, CA)
Application Number:	13/205,033
Patent Claims:	1. A method of treating acute moderately severe to severe post-surgical pain based on a Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) of 0 to 10 units in a patient in need of such treatment, said method comprising orally administering to the patient a dose of between about 20 mg to 30 mg of diclofenac potassium in a dispersible liquid formulation about every 4 to 8 hours over a period of at least 48 hours, wherein the daily total dose of diclofenac potassium administered in a 24 hour period is less than or equal to about 100 mg and wherein the average Pain Intensity Difference (PID) over the 48 hours is greater than 2 units, and wherein the acute post-surgical pain results from surgical correction of a bone deformity, wherein the surgical correction includes internal fixation. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation is administered about every 5 hours to about 8 hours. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation is administered about every 6 hours. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation is administered over a period of about 72 hours. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation is administered over a period of at least 48 hours, 72 hours, 96 hours, 120 hours, 144 hours, 168 hours or seven days. 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the amount of the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation comprises about 20 mg, 22.5 mg, 25 mg, 27.5 mg, 28 mg, or 30 mg of diclofenac potassium. 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the administered amount of diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation is effective for treating acute pain for about 6 to about 8 hours after administration. 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plasma concentration of diclofenac in a patient ranges between about 670 ng/ml to about 1500 ng/ml in less than 30 minutes with the concomitant onset of relief of acute pain. 9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the administration of diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation results in immediate increase in plasma concentration of diclofenac characterized by T(max) of about 0.47 hours. 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein diclofenac potassium is substantially eliminated from plasma in the first 2 hours following administration. 11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the amount of the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation comprises about 25 mg of diclofenac potassium. 12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the administration of diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation results in an average 48 hour NPRS pain score of about 249. 13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the administration of diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation results in a median time to onset of greater than or equal to 30% pain reduction of about 60 minutes in an 8 hour initial dosing period. 14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the administration of diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation provides a median time to onset of meaningful pain relief of about 70 minutes in an 8 hour initial dosing period. 15. The method according to claim 11, wherein the administration of diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation provides clinically significant analgesic efficacy for about 6 hours. 16. The method according to claim 11, wherein 25 mg of diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation is administered four times over a period of about 24 hours. 17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation is contained in a capsule. 18. The method according to claim 1, wherein no opioid is co-administered with the diclofenac potassium in the dispersible liquid formulation. 19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the acute post-surgical pain is severe. 20. The method according to claim 1, wherein the acute post-surgical pain is about 7 based on NPRS.