Chemical stability of bupivacaine in pH-adjusted solutions.

Recent clinical studies have suggested that alkalinization of bupivacaine may shorten the time to onset and lengthen its duration of action. However, addition of sodium bicarbonate to commercially manufactured bupivacaine can rapidly produce precipitation. This study was performed to study the stability and precipitation of bupivacaine solutions 0.25% and 0.50% with and without epinephrine 1:200,000 after alkalinization. The results indicate that alkalinization does not increase precipitation above recommended limits and that the concentration of bupivacaine in solutions is maintained at least 6 h after alkalinization.