Butorphanol

Butorphanol tartrate is indicated for the management of pain when the use of an opioid analgesic is appropriate.

Factors to be considered in determining the dose are age, body weight, physical status, underlying pathological condition, the use of other drugs, type of anesthesia to be used, and surgical procedure involved. Use in the elderly, in patients with hepatic or renal disease, or in labor requires extra caution (see PRECAUTIONS and Individualization Of Dosage in CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY). The following doses are for patients who do not have impaired hepatic or renal function and who are not on CNS active agents.

Use For Pain

The usual recommended dose for initial nasal administration is 1 mg (1 spray in one nostril). Adherence to this dose reduces the incidence of drowsiness and dizziness. If adequate pain relief is not achieved within 60 to 90 minutes, an additional 1 mg dose may be given.

The initial dose sequence outlined above may be repeated in 3 to 4 hours as required after the second dose of the sequence.

Depending on the severity of the pain, an initial dose of 2 mg (1 spray in each nostril) may be used in patients who will be able to remain recumbent in the event drowsiness or dizziness occurs. In such patients single additional 2 mg doses should not be given for 3 to 4 hours.

Use In Balanced Anesthesia

The use of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray is not recommended because it has not been studied in induction or maintenance of anesthesia.

Labor

The use of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray is not recommended as it has not been studied in labor.

Safety And Handling

Butorphanol tartrate nasal spray is an open delivery system with increased risk of exposure to health care workers.

In the priming process, a certain amount of butorphanol may be aerosolized; therefore, the pump sprayer should be aimed away from the patient or other people or animals.

The disposal of Schedule IV controlled substances must be consistent with State and Federal Regulations. The unit should be disposed of by unscrewing the cap, rinsing the bottle, and placing the parts in a waste container.

Butorphanol tartrate is contraindicated in patients hypersensitive to butorphanol tartrate or the preservative benzethonium chloride.

WARNINGS

Patients Dependent On Narcotics

Because of its opioid antagonist properties, butorphanol is not recommended for use in patients dependent on narcotics. Such patients should have an adequate period of withdrawal from opioid drugs prior to beginning butorphanol therapy. In patients taking opioid analgesics chronically, butorphanol has precipitated withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, agitation, mood changes, hallucinations, dysphoria, weakness and diarrhea.

Because of the difficulty in assessing opioid tolerance in patients who have recently received repeated doses of narcotic analgesic medication, caution should be used in the administration of butorphanol to such patients.

Drug Abuse And Dependence

Drug Abuse

Butorphanol tartrate, by all routes of administration, has been associated with episodes of abuse. Of the cases received, there were more reports of abuse with the nasal spray formulation than with the injectable formulation.

Physical Dependence, Tolerance, And Withdrawal

Prolonged, continuous use of butorphanol tartrate may result in physical dependence or tolerance (a decrease in response to a given dose). Abrupt cessation of use by patients with physical dependence may result in symptoms of withdrawal.

Note

Proper patient selection, dose and prescribing limitations, appropriate directions for use, and frequent monitoring are important to minimize the risk of abuse and physical dependence. (See Drug Abuse And Dependence.)

PRECAUTIONS

General

Hypotension associated with syncope during the first hour of dosing with butorphanol tartrate nasal spray has been reported rarely, particularly in patients with past history of similar reactions to opioid analgesics. Therefore, patients should be advised to avoid activities with potential risks.

Head Injury And Increased Intracranial Pressure

As with other opioids, the use of butorphanol in patients with head injury may be associated with carbon dioxide retention and secondary elevation of cerebrospinal fluid pressure, drug-induced miosis, and alterations in mental state that would obscure the interpretation of the clinical course of patients with head injuries. In such patients, butorphanol should be used only if the benefits of use outweigh the potential risks.

Head Injury And Intracranial Pressure

As with other opioids, the use of butorphanol in patients with head injury may be associated with carbon dioxide retention and secondary elevation of cerebrospinal fluid pressure, drug-induced miosis, and alterations in mental state that would obscure the interpretation of the clinical course of patients with head injuries. In such patients, butorphanol should be used only if the benefits of use outweigh the potential risks.

Disorders Of Respiratory Function Or Control

Butorphanol may produce respiratory depression, especially in patients receiving other CNS active agents, or patients suffering from CNS diseases or respiratory impairment.

Hepatic And Renal Disease

In patients with hepatic or renal impairment, the initial dose sequence of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray should be limited to 1 mg followed, if needed, by 1 mg in 90 to 120 minutes. The repeat dose sequence in these patients should be determined by the patient’s response rather than at fixed times but will generally be at intervals of no less than at 6 hours (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY: Pharmacokinetics And Individualization Of Dosagesection).

Cardiovascular Effects

Because butorphanol may increase the work of the heart, especially the pulmonary circuit, the use of butorphanol in patients with acute myocardial infarction, ventricular dysfunction, or coronary insufficiency should be limited to those situations where the benefits clearly outweigh the risk (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY).

Severe hypertension has been reported rarely during butorphanol therapy. In such cases, butorphanol should be discontinued and the hypertension treated with antihypertensive drugs. In patients who are not opioid dependent, naloxone has also been reported to be effective.

Use In Ambulatory Patients

1. Opioid analgesics, including butorphanol, impair the mental or physical abilities required for the performance of potentially dangerous tasks such as driving a car or operating machinery. Effects such as drowsiness or dizziness can appear, usually within the first hour after dosing. These effects may persist for varying periods of time after dosing. Patients who have taken butorphanol should not drive or operate dangerous machinery for at least 1 hour and until the effects of the drug are no longer present.
2. Alcohol should not be consumed while using butorphanol. Concurrent use of butorphanol with drugs that affect the central nervous system (e.g., alcohol, barbiturates, tranquilizers, and antihistamines) may result in increased central nervous system depressant effects such as drowsiness, dizziness and impaired mental function.
3. Butorphanol is one of a class of drugs known to be abused and thus should be handled accordingly (see Drug Abuse And Dependence).
4. Patients should be instructed on the proper use of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray (see the Patient Instruction Leaflet and Medication Guide).

Information For Patients

See Use in Ambulatory Patients subsection above, and also see the Patient Instruction Leaflet and Medication Guide.

Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment Of Fertility

Two-year carcinogenicity studies were conducted in mice and rats given butorphanol tartrate in the diet up to 60 mg/kg/day (180 mg/m² for mice and 354 mg/m² for rats). There was no evidence of carcinogenicity in either species in these studies.

Butorphanol was not genotoxic in S. typhimurium or E. coli assays or in unscheduled DNA synthesis and repair assays conducted in cultured human fibroblast cells.

Rats treated orally with 160 mg/kg/day (944 mg/m² ) had a reduced pregnancy rate. However, a similar effect was not observed with a 2.5 mg/kg/day (14.75 mg/m² ) subcutaneous dose.

Pregnancy

Teratogenic Effects

Category C

Reproduction studies in mice, rats and rabbits during organogenesis did not reveal any teratogenic potential to butorphanol. However, pregnant rats treated subcutaneously with butorphanol at 1 mg/kg (5.9 mg/m² ) had a higher frequency of stillbirths than controls. Butorphanol at 30 mg/kg/oral (360 mg/m² ) and 60 mg/kg/oral (720 mg/m² ) also showed higher incidences of post-implantation loss in rabbits.

There are no adequate and well-controlled studies of butorphanol tartrate in pregnant women before 37 weeks of gestation. Butorphanol tartrate should be used during pregnancy only if the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the infant.

Labor And Delivery

Butorphanol tartrate nasal spray is not recommended during labor or delivery because there is no clinical experience with its use in this setting.

Nursing Mothers

Butorphanol has been detected in milk following administration of butorphanol tartrate injection to nursing mothers. The amount an infant would receive is probably clinically insignificant (estimated 4 mcg/L of milk in a mother receiving 2 mg IM four times a day).

Although there is no clinical experience with the use of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray in nursing mothers, it should be assumed that butorphanol will appear in the milk in similar amounts following the nasal route of administration.

Pediatric Use

Butorphanol is not recommended for use in patients below 18 years of age because safety and efficacy have not been established in this population.

Geriatric Use

Of the approximately 1700 patients treated with butorphanol tartrate nasal spray in clinical studies, 8% were 65 years of age or older and 2% were 75 years or older.

Due to changes in clearance, the mean half-life of butorphanol is increased by 25% (to over 6 hours) in patients over the age of 65 years (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY: Pharmacokineticssection). Elderly patients may be more sensitive to the side effects of butorphanol. In clinical studies of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray, elderly patients had an increased frequency of headache, dizziness, drowsiness, vertigo, constipation, nausea and/or vomiting, and nasal congestion compared with younger patients. There are insufficient efficacy data for patients ≥65 years to determine whether they respond differently from younger patients.

Initially a 1 mg dose of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray should generally be used in geriatric patients and 90 to 120 minutes should elapse before administering a second 1 mg dose, if needed (see CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY: Individualization of Dosagesection).

Butorphanol and its metabolites are known to be substantially excreted by the kidney, and the risk of toxic reactions to this drug may be greater in patients with impaired renal function. Because elderly patients are more likely to have decreased renal function, care should be taken in dose selection.

Clinical Trial Experience

A total of 2446 patients were studied in premarketing clinical trials of butorphanol. Approximately half received butorphanol tartrate injection with the remainder receiving butorphanol tartrate nasal spray. In nearly all cases the type and incidence of side effects with butorphanol by any route were those commonly observed with opioid analgesics.

The adverse experiences described below are based on data from short-term and long-term clinical trials in patients receiving butorphanol by any route. There has been no attempt to correct for placebo effect or to subtract the frequencies reported by placebo-treated patients in controlled trials.

The most frequently reported adverse experiences across all clinical trials with butorphanol tartrate injection and butorphanol tartrate nasal spray were somnolence (43%), dizziness (19%), nausea and/or vomiting (13%). In long-term trials with butorphanol tartrate nasal spray only, nasal congestion (13%) and insomnia (11%) were frequently reported.

The following adverse experiences were reported at a frequency of 1% or greater in clinical trials, and were considered to be probably related to the use of butorphanol.

Body as a Whole: asthenia/lethargy, headache, sensation of heat

Cardiovascular: vasodilation, palpitations

Digestive: anorexia, constipation, dry mouth, nausea and/or vomiting, stomach pain

Nervous: anxiety, confusion, dizziness, euphoria, floating feeling, insomnia, nervousness, paresthesia, somnolence, tremor

Respiratory: bronchitis, cough, dyspnea, epistaxis, nasal congestion, nasal irritation, pharyngitis, rhinitis, sinus congestion, sinusitis, upper respiratory infection

Skin and Appendages: sweating/clammy, pruritus

Special Senses: blurred vision, ear pain, tinnitus, unpleasant taste

The following adverse experiences were reported with a frequency of less than 1% in clinical trials and were considered to be probably related to the use of butorphanol.

Cardiovascular: hypotension, syncope

Nervous: abnormal dreams, agitation, dysphoria, hallucinations, hostility, withdrawal symptoms

Skin and Appendages: rash/hives

Urogenital: impaired urination

The following infrequent additional adverse experiences were reported in a frequency of less than 1% of the patients studied in short-term butorphanol tartrate nasal spray trials and under circumstances where the association between these events and butorphanol administration is unknown. They are being listed as alerting information for the physician.

Body as a Whole: edema

Cardiovascular: chest pain, hypertension, tachycardia

Nervous: depression

Respiratory: shallow breathing

Postmarketing Experience

Postmarketing experience with butorphanol tartrate nasal spray and butorphanol tartrate injection has shown an adverse event profile similar to that seen during the premarketing evaluation of butorphanol by all routes of administration. Adverse experiences that were associated with the use of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray or butorphanol tartrate injection and that are not listed above have been chosen for inclusion below because of their seriousness, frequency of reporting, or probable relationship to butorphanol. Because they are reported voluntarily from a population of unknown size, estimates of frequency cannot be made. These adverse experiences include apnea, convulsion, delusion, drug dependence, excessive drug effect associated with transient difficulty speaking and/or executing purposeful movements, overdose, and vertigo. Reports of butorphanol overdose with a fatal outcome have usually but not always been associated with ingestion of multiple drugs.

Clinical Trial Experience

In all clinical trials, less than 1% of patients using butorphanol tartrate nasal spray had experiences that suggested the development of physical dependence or tolerance. Much of this information is based on experience with patients who did not have prolonged continuous exposure to butorphanol tartrate nasal spray. However, in one controlled clinical trial where patients with chronic pain from nonmalignant disease were treated with butorphanol tartrate nasal spray (n=303) or placebo (n=99) for up to 6 months, overuse (which may suggest the development of tolerance) was reported in nine (2.9%) patients receiving butorphanol tartrate nasal spray and no patients receiving placebo. Probable withdrawal symptoms were reported in eight (2.6%) patients using butorphanol tartrate nasal spray and no patients receiving placebo in the chronic nonmalignant pain study. Most of these patients abruptly discontinued butorphanol tartrate nasal spray after extended use or high doses. Symptoms suggestive of withdrawal included anxiety, agitation, tremulousness, diarrhea, chills, sweats, insomnia, confusion, incoordination, and hallucinations.

Postmarketing Experience

Butorphanol tartrate has been associated with episodes of abuse and dependence. Of the cases received, there were more reports of abuse with the nasal spray formulation than with the injectable formulation.

Clinical Manifestations

The clinical manifestations of butorphanol overdose are those of opioid drugs in general. Consequences of overdose vary with the amount of butorphanol ingested and individual response to the effects of opiates. The most serious symptoms are hypoventilation, cardiovascular insufficiency, coma, and death. Butorphanol overdose may be associated with ingestion of multiple drugs (see ADVERSE REACTIONS: Postmarketing Experiencesection).

Overdose can occur due to accidental or intentional misuse of butorphanol, especially in young children who may gain access to the drug in the home.

Treatment

The management of suspected butorphanol overdosage includes maintenance of adequate ventilation, peripheral perfusion, normal body temperature, and protection of the airway. Patients should be under continuous observation with adequate serial measures of mental state, responsiveness and vital signs. Oxygen and ventilatory assistance should be available with continual monitoring by pulse oximetry if indicated. In the presence of coma, placement of an artificial airway may be required. An adequate intravenous portal should be maintained to facilitate treatment of hypotension associated with vasodilation.

The use of a specific opioid antagonist such as naloxone should be considered. As the duration of butorphanol action usually exceeds the duration of action of naloxone, repeated dosing with naloxone may be required.

In managing cases of suspected butorphanol overdosage, the possibility of multiple drug ingestion should always be considered.

The analgesic effect of butorphanol is influenced by the route of administration. Onset of analgesia is within a few minutes for intravenous administration, within 15 minutes for intramuscular injection, and within 15 minutes for the nasal spray doses.

Peak analgesic activity occurs within 30 to 60 minutes following intravenous and intramuscular administration and within 1 to 2 hours following the nasal spray administration.

The duration of analgesia varies depending on the pain model as well as the route of administration, but is generally 3 to 4 hours with IM and IV doses as defined by the time 50% of patients required remedication. In postoperative studies, the duration of analgesia with IV or IM butorphanol was similar to morphine, meperidine, and pentazocine when administered in the same fashion at equipotent doses (see Clinical Trials). Compared to the injectable form and other drugs in this class, butorphanol tartrate nasal spray has a longer duration of action (4 to 5 hours) (see Clinical Trials).

Butorphanol tartrate injection is rapidly absorbed after IM injection and peak plasma levels are reached in 20 to 40 minutes.

After nasal administration, mean peak blood levels of 0.9 to 1.04 ng/mL occur at 30 to 60 minutes after a 1 mg dose (see Table 1). The absolute bioavailability of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray is 60 to 70% and is unchanged in patients with allergic rhinitis. In patients using a nasal vasoconstrictor (oxymetazoline) the fraction of the dose absorbed was unchanged, but the rate of absorption was slowed. The peak plasma concentrations were approximately half those achieved in the absence of the vasoconstrictor.

Following its initial absorption/distribution phase, the single dose pharmacokinetics of butorphanol by the intravenous, intramuscular, and nasal routes of administration are similar (see Figure 1).

Figure 1: Butorphanol Plasma Levels After IV, IM and Nasal Spray Administration of 2 mg Dose

Serum protein binding is independent of concentration over the range achieved in clinical practice (up to 7 ng /mL) with a bound fraction of approximately 80%.

The volume of distribution of butorphanol varies from 305 to 901 liters and total body clearance from 52 to 154 liters/hr (see Table 1).

Table 1: Mean Pharmacokinetic Parameters of Butorphanol in Young and Elderly Subjects*

Dose proportionality for butorphanol tartrate nasal spray has been determined at steady state in doses up to 4 mg at 6 hour intervals. Steady state is achieved within 2 days. The mean peak plasma concentration at steady state was 1.8-fold (maximal 3-fold) following a single dose.

The drug is transported across the blood brain and placental barriers and into human milk (see PRECAUTIONS: Labor And Delivery And Nursing Mothers).

Butorphanol is extensively metabolized in the liver. Metabolism is qualitatively and quantitatively similar following intravenous, intramuscular, or nasal administration. Oral bioavailability is only 5 to 17% because of extensive first pass metabolism of butorphanol.

The major metabolite of butorphanol is hydroxybutorphanol, while norbutorphanol is produced in small amounts. Both have been detected in plasma following administration of butorphanol, with norbutorphanol present at trace levels at most time points. The elimination half-life of hydroxybutorphanol is about 18 hours and, as a consequence, considerable accumulation (~5-fold) occurs when butorphanol is dosed to steady state (1 mg transnasally q6h for 5 days).

Elimination occurs by urine and fecal excretion. When H labelled butorphanol is administered to normal subjects, most (70 to 80%) of the dose is recovered in the urine, while approximately 15% is recovered in the feces.

About 5% of the dose is recovered in the urine as butorphanol. Forty-nine percent is eliminated in the urine as hydroxybutorphanol. Less than 5% is excreted in the urine as norbutorphanol.

Butorphanol pharmacokinetics in the elderly differ from younger patients (see Table 1). The mean absolute bioavailability of butorphanol tartrate nasal spray in elderly women (48%) was less than that in elderly men (75%), young men (68%), or young women (70%). Elimination half-life is increased in the elderly (6.6 hours as opposed to 4.7 hours in younger subjects).

In renally impaired patients with creatinine clearances <30 mL/min, the elimination half-life was approximately doubled and the total body clearance was approximately one half (10.5 hours [clearance 150 L/h] as compared to 5.8 hours [clearance 260 L/h] in healthy subjects). No effect on Cmax or Tmax was observed after a single dose.

After intravenous administration to patients with hepatic impairment, the elimination half-life of butorphanol was approximately tripled and total body clearance was approximately one half (half-life 16.8 hours, clearance 92 L/h) compared to healthy subjects (half-life 4.8 hours, clearance 175 L/h). The exposure of hepatically impaired patients to butorphanol was significantly greater (about 2-fold) than that in healthy subjects. Similar results were seen after nasal administration. No effect on Cmax or Tmax was observed after a single intranasal dose.

For further recommendations refer to PRECAUTIONS: Hepatic and Renal Disease, DRUG INTERACTIONS, and Geriatric Use and to the CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY: Individualization of Dosage.