Pain can result from a variety of factors. Some types of pain come and go, while others are long-lasting. Non-opioid and opioid medicines can be used to help manage different types of pain. Non-opioid medicines can also include prescription and over-the-counter medicines. Acute pain is a type of pain that comes on quickly but lasts a short amount of time. Journavx (jor-na-vix) was approved in 2025 and is the first non-opioid medicine in its class that is used to treat moderate to severe acute pain.
How Does It Work for Pain?
Acute pain can occur from injury, surgery, trauma, or illness and can last anywhere from a few minutes to a few months. It may also temporarily affect your quality of life and how you perform day-to-day activities. Depending on your pain level and the cause of your pain, there are different options to treat it. This can include a combination of physical therapy, medicines, exercise, and rest.
Journavx targets specific proteins in the body called sodium channels. Sodium channels help send pain signals to your brain. Your brain then processes how you will experience and respond to the pain. Journavx helps to block these sodium channels, which can help stop these pain signals from reaching your brain and can lower the amount of pain you feel.
How Do I Take It?
Journavx comes as a 50-mg tablet. The tablet should be swallowed whole and should not be crushed or chewed. When taking your first dose of Journavx, take the medicine one hour before or two hours after food. This helps the medicine to start working right away. After the first dose, all other doses of Journavx can be taken with or without food. The recommended dose is two tablets (100 mg total) for your first dose, then one tablet (50 mg) every 12 hours. Take Journavx as prescribed by your health care provider.
The medicine can be taken with clear liquids including water, apple juice, vegetable broth, tea, and black coffee. Take Journavx as prescribed by your health care provider. Avoid eating grapefruit or drinking grapefruit juice while taking Journavx, as this can increase your risk of developing side effects from the medicine.
If you have problems with your liver or take certain medicines, your health care provider may modify the dose of the medicines you are taking or have you stop taking some medicines. Tell your health care provider about all your health conditions and all the medicines you are taking.
How Was It Studied for Acute Pain?
Two studies were done on people who had two different types of surgery, abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) and bunionectomy (removal of bunions from the foot) to see if Journavx was safe and effective. In both studies, people received either Journavx, hydrocodone bitartrate/acetaminophen (opioid medicine for pain), or a placebo containing no medicine for 48 hours. They could also take ibuprofen as needed for more pain relief. People could participate in the study if they had moderate to severe pain within four hours after their abdominoplasty surgery or nine hours after anesthesia was stopped in their bunionectomy surgery.
The studies looked at the time-weighted sum of the pain intensity difference from 0 to 48 hours (SPID48) of Journavx compared to placebo. This helped look at how pain levels changed over the course of 48 hours. The higher the SPID48 score, the greater the pain reduction.
The average age of people in the abdominoplasty study was 42 years old, with most of the people being women (98%). The study included White Americans (70%), Black Americans (27%), and “Other” (4%), which included Asian Americans, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, and those classified as multiracial. About 34% of people identified as Hispanic or Latino.
The average age of people in the bunionectomy study was 48 years old. Most of the people in the bunionectomy study were women (85%). The study included White Americans (71%), Black Americans (24%), and “Other” (5%), which included Asian Americans, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, and those classified as multiracial. Around 34% of people identified as Hispanic or Latino.
What Benefits Were Seen?
In the abdominoplasty study, the SPID48 score was 118.4 points in the Journavx group compared to 70.1 points in the placebo group. In the bunionectomy study, the SPID48 score was 99.9 points in the Journvax group compared to 70.6 points in the placebo group. This means that the Journavx group had greater pain relief compared to the placebo group after both the abdominoplasty and bunionectomy surgeries.
Your results may differ from what was seen in clinical studies.
How Long Does It Take to Work?
In clinical studies, on average, Journavx started working in a few hours. Talk to your health care provider if you do not see an improvement in your pain after taking Journvax. Your health care provider may add another medicine or prescribe a different medicine. Do not take more Journavx than prescribed without talking to your health care provider.
What Are The Side Effects and How Can I Manage Them?
Journavx was well-tolerated in clinical studies compared to hydrocodone/acetaminophen. The most common side effects seen with Journvax are itching, muscle spasms, an increase in creatinine phosphokinase, and rash.
Journvax can cause itching. Keeping your skin hydrated by drinking plenty of water and using creams or lotions may help. Call your health care provider if your itching symptoms do not improve or get worse.
Call your health care provider if you experience muscle spasms while taking Journavx. If you experience this, try massaging the affected area, use heat if your muscle is tight or ice if your muscle is sore, and drink plenty of fluids. Call your health care provider if your symptoms do not improve or they get worse.
Taking Journavx may increase your creatine phosphokinase (CPK) levels. CPK is a protein that is found in the tissues of your heart, brain, and the muscles that connect to your bones (skeletal muscles). High CPK levels may indicate that there is damage to these tissues. Your health care provider may monitor the CPK levels in your blood while you are taking Journavx. Keep all appointments with your health care provider while you are taking Journavx.
If you experience a rash with Journavx, call your health care provider right away. If the rash spreads or causes additional symptoms, get emergency help.
What Is Additional Information About Journavx That I Should Know?
If you are a woman taking Journavx, the medicine may affect your ability to get pregnant. This may go away after you stop taking Journavx. Talk to your health care provider to learn more.
What Type of Drug Interactions Can Happen?
There are certain medicines called CYP3A medicines that can interact with Journavx. This can affect the blood levels of Journavx or the blood levels of other medicines you take with Journavx. Tell your health care provider about all of the prescription, over-the-counter, vitamins, herbals, and supplement medicines you are taking. Your health care provider will determine if you are taking a medicine that interacts with Journavx.
Journavx may cause certain types of hormonal birth control to not work as well. You may have to use additional non-hormonal backup contraceptives such as condoms or switch to another type of hormonal birth control. It is important that you use hormonal and/or non-hormonal contraception while taking Journavx and for 28 days after your last dose. Tell your health care provider if you are taking any birth control medicines.
Is There Any Cost Assistance Available?
There is a savings program offered by the manufacturer that may allow you to pay as little as $30 per prescription. Whether you are eligible depends on the type of health insurance you have. The manufacturer also offers patient assistant programs for those who do not have health insurance. For questions or more information, contact the drugmaker at 877-634-8789 or visit www.journavx.com/support.
