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Exparel User Reviews & Ratings

Exparel has an average rating of 5.7 out of 10 from a total of 70 reviews on Drugs.com. 49% of reviewers reported a positive experience, while 47% reported a negative experience.

Reviews for Exparel

  • Minina
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • September 11, 2019

For Pain "Exparel is complete joke for pain! I threw away $370 which is out of pocket for an injection that didn't work at all. I went through a complex hemorrhoidectomy, perhaps the most painful post surgery that exist and was sold on this miracle med that would provide 48-72 hrs of no pain. As someone who has horrible side effects to opioids, didn't think twice about going with it. Frankly, this practice should not be allowed if not enough studies have been done on specific surgeries. I really think its a big business between Pacira, the pharmaceutical company, and the hospital/doctors. I feel cheated and regret not having enough time to do more research. 48-72 hrs no pain? Really? The post surgery relief was the same as when anesthesia wears off. In summary I do not recommend Exparel please do not fall for false advertisement."

1 / 10
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54 Report
  • Dentist
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • January 4, 2022

For Pain "My wife had total knee replacement. The anesthesiologist administered Exparel and IT DID NOT WORK. She woke up in terrible pain. It took several days of badgering the surgeon for the proper pain meds to get her pain under control."

1 / 10
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23 Report
  • Melissa
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • December 5, 2019

For Pain "I was given this drug Exparel for post-surgical pain for a pelvic reconstruction. It did not work. At all. I woke up in so much pain I couldn't breathe and thought I would have a heart attack waiting for the morphine to kick in. Please don't let them talk you into this, it is a useless drug that won't help you."

1 / 10
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29 Report
  • Kelly
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • September 26, 2020

For Pain "I was given 266 mg injection during foot surgery to provide up to 96 hrs of pain relief. I was unprepared for it to only last 18 hrs. To say it was a disappointment is an understatement. I woke at 4 am in terrible pain that took hours to control using opioids that I’d hoped to delay, if not avoid. I will say it worked well for the initial 18 hrs though."

3 / 10
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23 Report
  • Sausage...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • October 3, 2018

For Pain "I was given this medication to relieve pain after surgery for a broken toe. I will NEVER allow anyone to inject me with it again. After 8 hours, I can't move or feel my toes which along with my legs are now huge. As a result of the anxiety from this, I can't sleep. I would rather have had the pain and a regular, predictable pain pill. Awful experience..."

2 / 10
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32 Report

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  • Addy
  • July 30, 2019

For Pain "Great medication for me, used after tummy tuck. It didn’t take all of the pain away, nothing is going to do that after a surgery in my opinion, but it did significantly reduce my pain, thus allowing me to take less oral narcotic meds, not to mention no unnecessary opioid induced constipation. I’d say it was super helpful!"

10 / 10
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28 Report
  • Mother...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • May 10, 2019

For Pain "I was given Exparel for pian during Robotic assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy. My first words upon awakening from anesthesia were PAIN! I writhed in pain 45 minutes until I was given IV dilaudid which eased the pain some. I had no idea I was given this medication until at discharge, the staff said I had to wear a special bracelet for several more days. IMO Exparel for pain did not work well for me."

1 / 10
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27 Report
  • Conce...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • November 26, 2019

For Pain "My son received an injection of this product after 4 wisdom teeth were removed. It did very little for the pain after about 4 hours and he needed to take the narcotics that we were trying to avoid in the first place as his pain suddenly became very severe. I wish we had just toughed it out with ibuprofen and Tylenol. Exparel is a waste of money and not very useful after tooth extractions. Don't waste your time if it is offered."

1 / 10
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22 Report
  • MissV...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • July 26, 2016

For Pain "I had a tummy tuck and heard about this drug to help with recovery. It certainly made the first 72 much more bearable. I paid an additional fee of about $300 for Exparel. It was a very good decision. I had no side effects. I prepared to be in agony and wasn't at all. Those 3 days post op can be the worst days. Exparel is a miracle."

10 / 10
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28 Report
  • Flygi...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • March 1, 2020

For Pain "I was told the Exparel nerve block would last between 3 & 5 days after major left shoulder surgery to fix multiple issues. I got 12 hours of relief. I’ve had sympathetically mediated pain of my upper left side for over 13 years & it’s well known that failed blocks are a part of the confirmation of sympathetically mediated pain. I’ve had multiple nerve blocks over the years, all have failed, some before I even got home, so why a doctor would think Exparel would be any different is beyond me. So if you’ve already had several failed nerve blocks don’t waste your time or money trying this one. I didn’t like the “dead” arm side effect. Literally my arm just hung there, dead, no feeling except extreme tingling in my fingers for the first few hours. Frankly I think it’s potentially incredibly dangerous to have NO feeling or the ability to move my arm. I was quite happy it wore off so quickly."

1 / 10
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17 Report
  • Karen...
  • September 29, 2013

For Pain "I was injected with this at the close of my foot surgery (5th metatarsal oblique fracture). I experienced NO pain at all during my recovery. I wore an armband for 96 hours to alert others, in case of emergency, not to re-administer this medicine. This injection enabled me to rest comfortably, and prevented me from needing to take narcotics for pain relief. Friends who had previous bunion/foot surgeries had warned me of how painful it would be. I expressed this to my doctor and he said the Experal would provide relief for as short as 24 hours to 72 hours. I NEVER had pain so can't say how long the shot lasted. My foot and leg were completely wrapped with an icing system integrated so I really couldn't tell how long my foot was actually numb."

10 / 10
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33 Report
  • Sfix
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • December 28, 2019

For Pain "We decided to pay the extra $200 for Exparel for my son's wisdom teeth removal. He had 4 teeth removed. We are on day two and he does not have any pain. My husband and I both had terrible pain with our wisdom teeth removals so we took the chance on Exparel. Not sure if he is in no pain because of the Exparel but it makes us feel better that maybe the $200 was worth it."

10 / 10
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16 Report
  • Beth...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • August 13, 2018

For Pain "For pain after robotic laparascopic abdominal surgery I had the choice of Experal or an epidural injection (I had epidural in the past for open abdominal surgery). Because I use non-opioid Lidocaine patches to successfully manage post-surgical nerve pain around incisions, I chose to try Experal. Would not use again. When you get Experal, it turns out, you cannot use Lidocaine patches or cream on top of it for 96 hours -- five days -- as there is an interaction risk. Lidocaine can cause the Experal to release all at once, which is life-threatening. I did not find the Experal to make a significant dent in my post-surgical pain. At day 3 or 4 after surgery, I was counting down the minutes until I could use a numbing patch, and still taking opioid pills to manage pain. Experal may work for others, or for mild pain but is no replacement for opioid drugs immediately following surgery."

5 / 10
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19 Report
  • KJSA
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • January 5, 2020

For Pain "My teenage twins had their deeply impacted wisdom teeth removed 3 days ago and today is the first day one of them felt pain. Their mouths were extremely numb for about 8 hours after surgery and they had a hard time drinking because they couldn’t feel their lips or tongue. Exparel definitely worked and kept them out of pain so I recommend it for wisdom teeth removal.(They also are taking 800 mg of ibuprofen every 4-6 hours. They’re big boys)"

10 / 10
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14 Report
  • Bano
  • Taken for 2 to 5 years
  • March 29, 2021

For Pain "Exparel has been a life saver for me. I’ve had 6 intensive colorectal surgeries in the last 3 years. I had exparel for all but 1, and it was the worst pain I had ever experienced. The rest I had exparel and it was life changing. By the time I was in pain again, I didn’t ever need to reach for the narcotic painkiller (that’s the last thing I would want to take for a multitude of reasons) and pain was easily controlled by 600mg ibuprofen. I can’t imagine how my last 3 years would have been like without Exparel. It’s a game changing product."

10 / 10
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10 Report
  • Mee
  • Taken for 1 to 6 months
  • December 28, 2021

For Pain "I had a surgery in the summer and my surgeon used Exparel to reduce pain but it made it a whole lot worse. I couldn’t even walk for 4 days and I ended up in the ER because of my reaction. Almost 6 months later, I am still very traumatized by this."

1 / 10
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8 Report
  • Mike
  • September 5, 2019

For Pain "This was used (without explaining risks) during oral surgery. My entire mouth area was and is numb. I can't eat, speak or drink. It does not wear off as the dentist said it would. I would NOT recommend taking this."

1 / 10
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13 Report
  • pairsh
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • February 11, 2018

For Pain "I had a Hemmroidectomy. When I came to, no pain relief whatsoever. My Doctor said a certain percentage of people get no relief. It would be nice if there was a test to see if it is effective, instead of waking up to no pain relief at all."

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16 Report
  • Rosie
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • February 10, 2021

For Pain "Given as a nerve block for breast reconstruction. Administration was very painful. After surgery it caused insomnia. I haven’t slept in 2 days! I have severe constipation. So far MOM, Miralax, Colace and suppository have not worked. No BM over 2 days! Arms and legs are shaky. I have had 5 previous surgeries and never was nauseous post op. I’ve been nauseous for 2 days. I am retaining water. I weigh 8 lbs more than normal. My pulse is 20 bpm faster than normal, it takes a long time for me to urinate, itching and crying for no reason. This med did not help with the pain at all. I’ve had to take hydrocodone for the pain. I’m angry that the anesthesiologist did not tell me the side effects first. This med has only made my post-op experience miserable. I would have been better off without it and it’s nasty side effects. I should have just taken hydrocodone post-op as I had in the past."

1 / 10
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9 Report
  • Did...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • May 12, 2022

For Pain "I had lipo 360 and fat transfer to my hips. I was given Exparel but as soon as I woke up, I was in horrible pain. It did not work for me at all. Such a disappointment and waste of money. I will say, it has worked for many of the people who’ve had the same procedure done. I wish I was able to experience the same thing. The only thing that help led was the opioid prescribed to me."

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6 Report
  • AsheM...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • February 19, 2021

For Pain "I’m 27 years old with a high pain tolerance. I had a total robotic hysterectomy. Exparel was given prior to my surgery while I was still awake. The administration was *extremely* painful, I wanted to scream but I couldn’t because I was so doped out on fentanyl while they were injecting/ stapling my abdomen over and over! It was a nightmare. I woke up from surgery in awful pain. They knocked me out with some kind of medication several times because I was crying out. I still don’t have any feeling at all in my upper abdomen and it’s been 4 days. I would not say this medication is worth it.. it didn’t help at all."

1 / 10
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8 Report
  • Lizzy
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • December 4, 2021

For Pain "I was given this after intensive foot surgery involving ligament and tendon repairs as well as bone reconstruction. Pros: none Cons: shook like a leaf for 36 hours. Do not recommend. Pain has been unbearable."

1 / 10
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6 Report
  • Wayne...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • February 5, 2020

For Pain "I have had two back surgeries. The 1st one (for a left leg issue) I did not get Exparel and the after pain was terrible. I could barely get my clothes on and off for almost 4 weeks. The 2nd operation (for the right leg issue) was virtually an identical procedure on the right side, but I was given an Exparel injection (only one). It was a night and day difference. I had very little pain and felt pretty normal after just one week. Great stuff."

10 / 10
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9 Report
  • Ken
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • October 31, 2019

For Pain "i was in the post op recovery room after having olecranon fracture reconstructive surgery and was having trouble managing the pain. They recommended the Exparel one time injection which under the circumstances I readily agreed to. It was administered in the upper pectoral/left shoulder region. I was told that the pain relief would last two days. It relieved the pain, but for only 6 hours."

5 / 10
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8 Report
  • Exparel...
  • Taken for less than 1 month
  • May 16, 2019

For Pain "I had a vestibulectomy and was terrified of the recovery. All I have to say is wow. Exparel was a miracle. I had no pain for a week after. By the time Exparel wore off all I needed was ibuprofen. This drug has made me no longer fear the aftermath of surgery. Just had a wrist surgery and requested the doctor use it. It’s only 24 hours out but again I have no pain. Bonus points in that my insurance covered it!"

10 / 10
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8 Report

Reviews may be edited to correct grammar/spelling or to remove inappropriate language and content. Reviews that appear to be created by parties with a vested interest are not published. This information is not intended to endorse any particular medication. While these reviews may be helpful, they are not a substitute for the expertise, knowledge, and judgement of healthcare professionals.