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Precision Pain Management - A Randomized Clinical Trial Assessing the Efficacy of Suzetrigine on Postoperative Analgesia Among Surgical Patients at Higher Risk for Persistent Postoperative Opioid Use (POU)

Precision Pain Management - A Randomized Clinical Trial Assessing the Efficacy of Suzetrigine on Postoperative Analgesia Among Surgical Patients at Higher Risk for Persistent Postoperative Opioid Use (POU)

Status
Recruiting
Phases
Phase 4
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT07672015
Enrollment
100
Registered
2026-06-26
Start date
2026-07-02
Completion date
2027-06-01
Last updated
2026-07-06

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Opioid Consumption, Postoperative

Keywords

persistent postoperative opioid use, artificial intelligence, postoperative pain

Brief summary

The purpose of the study is to investigate the efficacy of suzetrigine for treatment of acute postoperative pain among surgical patients identified as high risk for persistent postoperative opioid use (POU). Using a validated artificial intelligence predictive model (termed SurgNet-POU) developed by the PI, electronic health record (EHR) data will be queried from all prospective surgical patients undergoing orthopedic surgery and inputted into the model to predict risk of POU (defined as requiring opioids ≥ 3 months after surgery). Those identified as high risk by the SurgNet-POU will be eligible candidates for this study. Suzetrigine (Vertex Pharmaceuticals) is an FDA-approved non-opioid oral analgesic that acts as a selective Nav1.8 sodium channel blocker. It has been shown to have efficacy in post-surgical pain and has compared favorably to placebo and similar to some opioids, without the risk of addiction or other adverse events related to opioids. Consented participants will be randomized to one of two arms: (1) standard care (termed standard care) defined as usual prescribing outpatient opioid analgesic protocols per surgical team; versus (2) standard care combined with 14-day regimen of suzetrigine. Those randomized to the suzetrigine arm will receive 100mg suzetrigine PO \ 1-2 hours prior to surgery and take 50mg po twice a day for 14 days postoperatively. The primary outcome will be total opioid consumption over 14 days postoperatively. Secondary outcomes include average, highest and lowest pain scores at 7, 14, 30, and 90 days after surgery; and opioid consumption at 7, 30, and 90 days after surgery.

Detailed description

The purpose of the study is to investigate the efficacy of suzetrigine for treatment of acute postoperative pain among surgical patients identified as high risk for persistent postoperative opioid use (POU). Using a validated artificial intelligence predictive model (termed SurgNet-POU) developed by the PI, electronic health record (EHR) data will be queried from all prospective surgical patients undergoing orthopedic surgery and inputted into the model to predict risk of POU (defined as requiring opioids ≥ 3 months after surgery). Those identified as high risk by the SurgNet-POU will be eligible candidates for this study. Suzetrigine (Vertex Pharmaceuticals) is an FDA-approved non-opioid oral analgesic that acts as a selective Nav1.8 sodium channel blocker. It has been shown to have efficacy in post-surgical pain and has compared favorably to placebo and similar to some opioids, without the risk of addiction or other adverse events related to opioids. Consented participants will be randomized to one of two arms: (1) standard care (termed standard care) defined as usual prescribing outpatient opioid analgesic protocols per surgical team; versus (2) standard care combined with 14-day regimen of suzetrigine. Those randomized to the suzetrigine arm will receive 100mg suzetrigine PO \ 1-2 hours prior to surgery and take 50mg po twice a day for 14 days postoperatively. The primary outcome will be total opioid consumption over 14 days postoperatively. Secondary outcomes include average, highest and lowest pain scores at 7, 14, 30, and 90 days after surgery; and opioid consumption at 7, 30, and 90 days after surgery. Our objective is to investigate the therapeutic benefits of suzetrigine for postoperative analgesia among patients identified as high risk for POU from our AI model, SurgNet-POU. Primary Specific Aim. Demonstrate the potential efficacy of suzetrigine for postoperative analgesia in patients undergoing major surgery that are identified as high risk for POU. This will be performed as a pilot study and executed as a randomized clinical trial of up to 100 participants. Hypothesis 1: Use of suzetrigine as part of a postoperative outpatient oral regimen will reduce 14-day postoperative opioid consumption in patients that are higher risk for POU. Secondary Specific Aim: Among patients that are identified as high risk for POU after surgery, demonstrate the potential efficacy of suzetrigine in reducing pain and POU incidence after 3 months. Hypothesis 1: Pain and opioid consumption will be reduced in the suzetrigine group compare to control at multiple post-procedure time points, including 1 week, 14 days, 1 month, and 3 months after. There will be up to 100 participants recruited who are considered high risk for POU and undergoing major orthopedic surgery (hip arthroplasty, knee arthroplasty, shoulder arthroplasty, joint arthroscopy, foot/ankle surgery, upper extremity fracture surgery, spine surgery), breast surgery (mastectomy, breast reconstruction), gynecological surgery (hysterectomy, myomectomy), or abdominal surgery.

Interventions

DRUGSuzetrigine

In addition to standard postoperative analgesia care (per surgeon), the participant in the intervention arm will receive a 14-day dosing regimen for suzetrigine.

DRUGStandard Care (in control arm)

participants will receive the standard postoperative analgesia care provided by their surgeon.

Sponsors

University of California, San Diego
Lead SponsorOTHER
Wellcome Leap Inc.
CollaboratorINDUSTRY

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Patients who are identified as high-risk for POU as calculated by our SurgNet-POU predictive deep learning model. The probability threshold will be set at \~\> 0.25. Potential participants will be screened prior to surgery by incorporating their electronic health record data in to the model. * Patients undergoing major orthopedic surgery (hip arthroplasty, knee arthroplasty, shoulder arthroplasty, joint arthroscopy, foot/ankle surgery, upper extremity fracture surgery, spine surgery), breast surgery (mastectomy, breast reconstruction), gynecological surgery (hysterectomy, myomectomy), or abdominal surgery. * Adult patients of at least 18 years of age * Has the capacity to consent

Exclusion criteria

* Pregnancy * Incarceration * Patients with a previous history of opioid use disorder. * Patients on fentanyl transdermal patch, methadone, and/or buprenorphine.

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Total Opioid Consumption Over 14 Days PostoperativelyFrom enrollment to 14 days postoperativelyPrimary endpoint - total opioid consumption over the first 14 postoperative days (standardized to oral morphine equivalents in milligrams)

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Opioid Consumption Over Last 7 DaysFrom enrollment to 3 months after surgery.Opioid consumption over last 7 days at 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months after surgery (standardized to oral oxycodone equivalents in milligrams).
Incidence of Persistent Opioid Use (POU)From enrollment to 3 months after surgery.Incidence of POU, defined as any opioid consumption required at ≥ 3 months after surgery.
Average, Worst, and Best Pain Over Last 7 DaysFrom enrollment to 3 months after surgery.Average, worst, and best pain, measured as the 11-point Numeric Rating Scale for pain (0-10) over the last 7 days at 1 week, 14 days, 1 month, and 3 months after surgery. The lower the score on the scale corresponds to less pain and the higher the score corresponds the more pain (worse outcome).
opioid-related side effects1 week, 14 days, 1 month, and 3 months after surgeryincidence of any opioid-related side effects over last 7 days at 1 week, 14 days, 1 month, and 3 months after surgery. These opioid-related side effects will include nausea, vomiting, sedation, and constipation.

Countries

United States

Contacts

CONTACTRodney A Gabriel
ragabriel@health.ucsd.edu858-663-7747
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORRodney A Gabriel, MD, MAS

University of California, San Diego

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Jul 7, 2026