2.1 General Dosing information

The recommended dose of OraVerse is based on the number of cartridges of local anesthetic with vasoconstrictor administered:

OraVerse should be administered following the dental procedure using the same location(s) and technique(s) (infiltration or block injection) employed for the administration of the local anesthetic.

Chemically disinfect the carpule cap by wiping with either isopropyl alcohol (91%) or ethyl alcohol (70%). Many commercially available brands of isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol, as well as solutions of ethyl alcohol not of U.S.P. grade, contain denaturants that are injurious to rubber and therefore are not to be used. Inspect carpules visually prior to administration and do not use if particulate matter, discoloration, cracks in the glass, protruding plungers or other defects are observed.

Note: Do not administer OraVerse if particulate matter, discoloration, cracks in the glass, protruding plungers or other defects are observed.

2.2 Dosing in Special Populations

In pediatric patients weighing between ≥15 kg and <30 kg, the maximum dose of OraVerse recommend is ½ cartridge (0.2 mg).
(Note: Use in pediatric patients under 3years of age or weighing less than15 kg (33 lbs) is not recommended. A dose of more than 1 cartridge [0.4 mg] of OraVerse has not been studied in children less than 4 years of age.)

5.1 Cardiovascular Events

Myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular spasm, and cerebrovascular occlusion have been reported to occur following the parenteral administration of phentolamine. These events usually occurred in association with marked hypotensive episodes producing shock-like states.

Tachycardia and cardiac arrhythmias may occur with the use of phentolamine or other alpha-adrenergic blocking agents. Although such effects are uncommon after administration of OraVerse, clinicians should be alert to the signs and symptoms of these events, particularly in patients with a prior history of cardiovascular disease.

6.1 Clinical Trials Experience

Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials of a drug cannot be directly compared to rates in the clinical trials of another drug and may not reflect the rates observed in practice.

Dental patients were administered a dose of either 0.2, 0.4 or 0.8mg of OraVerse. The majority of adverse reactions were mild and resolved within 48 hours. There were no serious adverse reactions and no discontinuations due to adverse reactions.

Table 1 lists adverse reactions where the frequency was greater than or equal to 3% in any OraVerse dose group and was equal to or exceeded that of the control group.

An examination of population subgroups did not reveal a differential adverse reaction incidence on the basis of age, gender, or race.

Results from the pain assessments in Study 1 and Study 2, involving mandibular and maxillary procedures, respectively, indicated that the majority of dental patients in both OraVerse and control groups experienced no or mild oral pain, with less than 10% of patients in each group reporting moderate oral pain with a similar distribution between the OraVerse and control groups. No patient experienced severe pain in these studies.

Study 4 included 150 pediatric patients between 2-5 years of age who received a dose of either ¼ cartridge (0.1 mg), ½ cartridge (0.2 mg) or 1 cartridge (0.4 mg) of OraVerse or sham injection (placebo). Safety in patients in Study 4 was similar to safety in older patients described above. Post-procedural revealed that oral pain was reported in the OraVerse group with a higher frequency (10.1%) than the placebo group (3.9%). The proportion of patients in the OraVerse and placebo groups was comparable with respect to the highest severity of pain experienced: 30.4% of OraVerse patients and 30% of placebo patients reported no pain; 43.1% of OraVerse patients and 45.0% of placebo patients reported mild pain; 19.0% of OraVerse subjects and 17.5% of placebo patients reported moderate pain; and 15.2% of OraVerse patients and 15.0% of placebo patients reported severe pain.

6.2 Adverse Reactions in Clinical Trials

Adverse reactions reported by less than 3% but at least 2 dental patients receiving OraVerse and occurring at a greater incidence than those receiving control, included diarrhea, facial swelling, increased blood pressure/hypertension, injection site reactions, jaw pain, oral pain, paresthesia, pruritus, tenderness, upper abdominal pain and vomiting. The majority of these adverse reactions were mild and resolved within 48 hours. The few reports of paresthesia were mild and transient and resolved during the same time period.

6.3 Post Marketing Adverse Reactions Reports from Literature and Other Sources

The following adverse reactions have been identified during postapproval parenteral use of phentolamine mesylate. Because these reactions are reported voluntarily from a population of uncertain size, it is not always possible to reliably estimate their frequency or establish a causal relationship to drug exposure.

Acute and prolonged hypotensive episodes and cardiac arrhythmias have been reported with the use of phentolamine. In addition, weakness, dizziness, flushing, orthostatic hypotension, and nasal stuffiness have occurred.

7.1 Lidocaine and Epinephrine

When OraVerse was administered as an intraoral submucosal injection 30 minutes after injection of a local anesthetic, 2% lidocaine HCl with 1:100,000 epinephrine, the lidocaine concentration increased immediately after OraVerse intraoral injection. Lidocaine AUC and Cmax values were not affected by administration of OraVerse. OraVerse administration did not affect the PK of epinephrine.

8.1 Pregnancy

8.2 Lactation

Risk Summary
There is no information regarding the presence of phentolamine in human milk, the effects on the breastfed infant or the effects on milk production. The developmental and health benefits of breastfeeding should be considered along with the mother’s clinical need for OraVerse and any potential adverse effects on the breastfed infant from OraVerse, or from the underlying maternal condition.

8.4 Pediatric Use

The safety and efficacy of OraVerse has not been established in patients younger than 3 years.
The safety and effectiveness of OraVerse in pediatric patients ages 3 years and older is supported by evidence from adequate and well-controlled studies of OraVerse in adults, with additional adequate and well-controlled studies of OraVerse in pediatric patients ages 12-17 years old [Studies 1 (mandibular procedures) and 2 (maxillary procedures)], ages 6-11 years old [Study 3 (mandibular and maxillary procedures)], and another study in patients ages 2-5 years [Study 4]. Study 4 assessed safety and effectiveness in patients 4 to 5 years, but was not designed to demonstrate efficacy. Use in patients 3 to <4 years is supported by similar pharmacokinetics and safety in these patients compared with older pediatric patients (see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3)]. Use of OraVerse in this age group (3 to < 4 years) is also supported by the similarity in the exposure response of OraVerse for pediatric and adult patients, and the adequacy of the safety database for patients age ≥ 3. The safety database for patients age < 3 is limited, and therefore, use in patients age < 3 is not recommended. Dosages in pediatric patients may need to be limited based on body weight. [see Dosage and Administration (2)]

8.5 Geriatric Use

Of the total number of patients in clinical studies of OraVerse, 55 were 65 and over, while 21 were 75 and over. No overall differences in safety or effectiveness were observed between these patients and younger patients, and other reported clinical experience has not identified differences in responses between the elderly and younger patients, but greater sensitivity of some older individuals cannot be ruled out.

12.1 Mechanism of Action

The mechanism by which OraVerse accelerates reversal of soft-tissue anesthesia and the associated functional deficits is not fully understood. Phentolamine mesylate, the active ingredient in OraVerse, produces an alpha-adrenergic block of relatively short duration resulting in vasodilatation when applied to vascular smooth muscle. In an animal model, OraVerse increased local blood flow in submucosal tissue of the dog when given after an intraoral injection of lidocaine 2% with 1:100,000 epinephrine.

12.3 Pharmacokinetics

Following OraVerse administration, phentolamine is 100% available from the submucosal injection site and peak concentrations are achieved 10-20 minutes after injection. Phentolamine systemic exposure increased linearly after 0.8 mg compared to 0.4 mg OraVerse intraoral submucosal injection. The terminal elimination half-life of phentolamine in the blood was approximately 2-3 hours.

13.1 Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment of Fertility

Carcinogenesis
Carcinogenic studies with OraVerse have not been conducted.

Mutagenesis
Phentolamine was not mutagenic in the in-vitro bacterial reverse mutation (Ames) assay. In the in-vitro chromosomal aberration study in Chinese hamster ovary cells, numerical aberrations were slightly increased after a 4-hour exposure to phentolamine without metabolic activation and structural aberrations were slightly increased after a 4-hour exposure to phentolamine with metabolic activation only at the highest concentrations tested, but neither numerical nor structural aberrations were increased after a 20-hour exposure without metabolic activation. Phentolamine was not clastogenic in two in-vivo mouse micronucleus assays.

Impairment of Fertility
The effect of phentolamine on female fertility has not been studied. Male rats treated with oral phentolamine for nine weeks (four weeks prior to mating, 3 weeks during the mating period and 2 weeks after mating) were mated with untreated females. At doses up to 143-times human therapeutic exposure levels at the Cmax, no adverse effects on male fertility parameters or on reproductive parameters in the untreated females mated with the treated males were observed.

Store at controlled room temperature, 20-25°C (68-77°F) with brief excursions permitted between 15-30°C (59-86°F) (see USP Controlled Room Temperature)

Protect from direct heat and light. Do not permit to freeze.