Heron Therapeutics Inc, a commercial-stage biotechnology company, announced APONVIE (aprepitant) injectable emulsion is now commercially available for intravenous (IV) use in adults for the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV).

According to the company, when delivered via a single IV injection, APONVIE reaches drug levels associated with ≥97% receptor occupancy in the brain within 5 minutes and maintains therapeutic plasma concentrations for at least 48 hours. The company describes APONVIE as a ready-to-use, easy to administer, innovative IV formulation that ensures rapid and consistent exposure in patients undergoing surgery. Treatment with aprepitant resulted in approximately 50% fewer patients vomiting in the first 24 and 48 hours compared to the current standard-of-care, IV ondansetron.

“There are approximately 36 million procedures in the U.S. each year involving patients with high to moderate risk for PONV, the patients who would benefit most from APONVIE. With superior efficacy and convenient dosing, APONVIE has the potential to reach several hundred million dollars in sales,” said Barry Quart, PharmD, chairman and chief executive officer of Heron. “This launch supports our ongoing commitment to delivering innovative solutions that improve the postoperative experience by addressing the two most common concerns after surgery, postoperative pain with ZYNRELEF and postoperative nausea and vomiting with APONVIE.”

“PONV is one of the most common and concerning side effects patients experience after surgery. Inadequately managed PONV can result in poor patient outcomes, decreased patient satisfaction as well as increased healthcare costs,” said Randy Robbins, MD, managing partner at Valiant Anesthesia Associates PLLC. “Aprepitant is proven to be the most effective single agent to prevent PONV based on a comprehensive Cochrane meta-analysis. The launch of APONVIE will now allow providers to prevent PONV without the limitations of the current oral route of administration. We are very excited to see that physicians can now offer patients a more convenient IV push that delivers aprepitant in a rapid, consistent, and reliable way with the same 48-hour duration of effect, providing a better experience for patients postoperatively.”