Chloroprocaine
Chloroprocaine is a fast-acting numbing medicine (local anesthetic) used by healthcare providers for nerve blocks and numbing of tissue as an injection, and for numbing the surface of the eye as an eye product.
🧬 Where this information comes from Click to expand
The clinical label records used on this page are FDA-filed Structured Product Labeling (SPL) retrieved through openFDA. We identified 5 clinical label sets within the page’s selected clinical scope after exact ingredient or ingredient-combination matching and applicable route/form matching. Forms, routes, brands, labelers, strengths, and NDC product-record counts are built separately from matching FDA National Drug Code Directory records. The linked DailyMed document is a representative official source for verification, not the page’s only clinical source. View the linked label on DailyMed →
📖 Chloroprocaine: Patient Information Guide
A plain-language walkthrough of Chloroprocaine — what it treats, how it works, how it’s taken, side effects, warnings and interactions. Tap any section to expand it.
What Chloroprocaine is used for
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Chloroprocaine is a local anesthetic used by healthcare providers to numb tissue or nerves for a procedure.
- Nesacaine 1% and 2% multidose vials: local anesthesia by infiltration and peripheral nerve block (not for lumbar or caudal epidural).
- Nesacaine-MPF 2% and 3% single-dose vials, and Chloroprocaine Hydrochloride 2% and 3% single-dose vials: infiltration, peripheral and central nerve block, including lumbar and caudal epidural blocks.
- Iheezo (eye product): ocular surface anesthesia.
How Chloroprocaine works
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Chloroprocaine blocks the start and travel of nerve signals. It makes nerves harder to excite and slows the signal along the nerve, so pain messages do not get through.
Pain is lost first, then temperature, touch, position sense and muscle tone.
How Chloroprocaine is taken (dosage)
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A healthcare provider gives chloroprocaine, so there is no home dosing or missed dose. The amount depends on the procedure, the tissue, the depth of numbness needed and your health.
- Injection products can be given as a single injection or continuously through a catheter.
- Iheezo is applied as drops to the eye surface and may be reapplied as needed.
- Doses are lowered for children, older or debilitated people, and people with heart or liver disease.
Chloroprocaine side effects in detail
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Most effects relate to the nervous system and heart, especially if too much gets into the bloodstream.
- Restlessness or anxiety
- Dizziness
- Ringing in the ears
- Blurred vision
- Tremors
- Low blood pressure and slow heart rate
- Backache or headache after epidural or caudal block
Seizures, trouble breathing, allergic reactions, bluish skin color and loss of bladder or bowel control are serious and need urgent attention.
Chloroprocaine warnings and precautions
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- Dose-related toxicity: too much drug in the blood, or accidental injection into a blood vessel or spinal fluid, can cause seizures, breathing problems, heart rhythm problems and cardiac arrest.
- Methemoglobinemia: blood carries less oxygen, causing bluish skin. Higher risk with G6PD deficiency, heart or lung problems, infants under 6 months and oxidizing drugs.
- Allergy: rare, but can be severe. Cross-sensitivity among ester-type anesthetics has been reported.
- Nesacaine multidose vials contain methylparaben and are not for lumbar or caudal epidural use.
- Joint infusions: cartilage damage (chondrolysis) has been reported after local anesthetic infusion into joints, which is not an approved use.
- Iheezo: not for injection; do not touch the eye for 10 to 20 minutes; prolonged use of eye anesthetics can cause permanent corneal damage; do not touch the dropper tip to any surface.
Chloroprocaine interactions: what it interacts with
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A few drug combinations need care.
- Sulfonamide antibiotics: a chloroprocaine breakdown product blocks their action.
- MAO inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants or phenothiazines with epinephrine-containing anesthetics: risk of severe, prolonged blood pressure changes.
- Vasopressors with ergot-type oxytocic drugs: risk of severe, persistent high blood pressure or stroke.
- Other local anesthetics: toxicity may add up.
- Oxidizing agents: higher methemoglobinemia risk.
This is not a complete list of interactions. Always talk with your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping, or changing any medication.
Before taking Chloroprocaine
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- Allergy to PABA-ester type drugs: injection products should not be used.
- Neurological disease, spinal deformities, septicemia or severe high blood pressure: extreme caution with lumbar or caudal epidural anesthesia.
- G6PD deficiency, methemoglobinemia, heart or lung problems: higher risk of methemoglobinemia.
- Heart or liver disease, older or debilitated people, and children: lower doses are used.
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding (Iheezo): no adequate human studies and no breast milk data.
- Children (Iheezo): safety and effectiveness not established. Older adults showed no overall differences.
Chloroprocaine overdose: if you take too much
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Too much chloroprocaine, or accidental injection into the spinal fluid, can cause restlessness, tremors, seizures, drowsiness, slowed breathing, low blood pressure and cardiac arrest. Providers watch vital signs closely and give oxygen at the first sign of change. Treatment includes keeping the airway open, assisting breathing, treating seizures and supporting circulation.
Pharmacodynamics: what Chloroprocaine does in the body
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Chloroprocaine blocks nerve signals so sensation fades in a set order: pain, temperature, touch, position sense, then muscle tone. At normal doses, effects on the heart and circulation are minimal. At toxic blood levels it can slow heart conduction, weaken the heart and cause seizures or deep central nervous system depression.
Pharmacokinetics: how your body processes Chloroprocaine
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Chloroprocaine works quickly, usually within 6 to 12 minutes, and numbness can last up to 60 minutes depending on amount and route. Its half-life in blood is very short (about 21 to 25 seconds in adults, 43 seconds in newborns in lab testing). Enzymes in the blood (pseudocholinesterase) break it down quickly, and the kidneys clear the byproducts. It can cross the placenta.
How to store Chloroprocaine
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Protect from light. Store at 20° to 25°C (68° to 77°F) .
📄 Written from Chloroprocaine’s FDA-approved label information, summarized in plain language with AI, and reviewed by our pharmacy team before publication. Every point is grounded in that labeling — nothing is invented. How we use AI →
Supplements & herbs that interact with Chloroprocaine
5 supplements and herbal products have documented interactions with Chloroprocaine in the licensed clinical database we use. Most are manageable — but your pharmacist should know about everything you take, including vitamins and herbals.
- Major · 1
- Moderate · 4
Educational information from a licensed clinical database (Natural Medicines) — see our data sources & update cadence. Not medical advice: an interaction being documented does not mean it will happen to you; do not start or stop medications or supplements without professional guidance.
🩺 Chloroprocaine: pharmacist answers to common questions
Quick, plain-English answers to the questions patients ask most about Chloroprocaine — the kind of thing our pharmacy team would talk through with you at the counter.
What is chloroprocaine used for?
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How long does it take to work and how long does it last?
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Do I give it to myself?
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What should I watch for after getting it?
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Do I need to avoid anything after Iheezo?
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Should I tell my provider about my other medicines?
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Is Chloroprocaine available over the counter?
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When was Chloroprocaine first available?
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Who makes Chloroprocaine?
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💬 Answers drafted from Chloroprocaine’s FDA-approved label information, summarized in plain language with AI, and reviewed by our pharmacy team before publication. Grounded in that labeling — nothing is made up. How we use AI →
🧰 More about Chloroprocaine on HelloPharmacist
💊 Chloroprocaine forms and strengths (how it comes)
Chloroprocaine is available in 2 forms. Different forms and brands can have different approved uses, doses, schedules, and directions. Follow the instructions for your exact product, and do not switch forms without guidance from your prescriber or pharmacist.
Injection
How this form is used
- Nesacaine 1% and 2% multidose vials are used for numbing by infiltration and peripheral nerve block, not for lumbar or caudal epidural use.
- Nesacaine-MPF 2% and 3% single-dose vials are used for infiltration and peripheral and central nerve block, including lumbar and caudal epidural blocks.
- Chloroprocaine Hydrochloride injection 2% and 3% single-dose vials are used for infiltration and peripheral and central nerve block, including lumbar and caudal epidural blocks.
- Nesacaine and chloroprocaine injections can be given as a single injection or continuously through a catheter.
- Nesacaine and chloroprocaine injections are not to be used for subarachnoid administration.
- For caudal and lumbar epidural block, Nesacaine-MPF labeling recommends a test dose before the full block.
- Nesacaine-MPF contains no preservative, so unused injection left in the vial after first use is discarded.
Eye ointment
How this form is used
- Iheezo is used for ocular surface anesthesia (numbing the surface of the eye).
- Iheezo is applied as 3 drops to the eye surface in the area of the planned procedure.
- Iheezo may be reapplied as needed to maintain the numbing effect.
- Iheezo is given under the direct supervision of a healthcare provider, not for self-administration.
- After Iheezo, do not touch the eye for at least 10 to 20 minutes.
📊 Chloroprocaine on the U.S. market: products, makers and brands
How Chloroprocaine appears in the FDA’s National Drug Code Directory — including its dosage forms, strengths, brand names, manufacturers, and FDA-listed product records. These are directory records, not sales or prescription volume.
FDA-listed product records by dose form (tablet variants merged) — FDA National Drug Code Directory. Record counts are not sales or prescription volume.
Also listed with the FDA, not a patient dose form: Powder (2) — bulk drug substance sold to compounders/manufacturers and multi-item kits. These aren’t counted in the dose-form total above.
Share of FDA-listed product records by manufacturer — FDA National Drug Code Directory. Record counts are not sales or prescription volume.
📈 How widely Chloroprocaine is used (Medicaid data)
A general measure of how commonly Chloroprocaine is prescribed, based on Medicaid — one of the largest public drug programs. The figure below is prescriptions filled in Q1–Q4 2025, summed across every form and brand of the drug.
Think of this as a proxy for how widely Chloroprocaine is used, drawn from freely available public data. Medicaid is just one program — these numbers don’t include Medicare, other government coverage, or commercial and cash-pay prescriptions, so real-world use is higher than what’s shown here.
How commonly is Chloroprocaine prescribed? Of the 1,599 medications we measure, Chloroprocaine ranks #1,111 by Medicaid prescriptions — more than 31% of them.
Utilization by Chloroprocaine product
Pick a product to see its own Medicaid numbers. Each chip is one clinical product — a specific strength & dosage form as defined by RxNorm — with brand-name and generic versions combined.
chloroprocaine hydrochloride 0.03 MG/MG Ophthalmic Gel Most dispensed
Summed across the 1 of 3 listed NDC products with Medicaid activity — every brand and generic of this exact strength & form. RxNorm 2613956
20 ML chloroprocaine hydrochloride 20 MG/ML Injection
Summed across the 2 of 8 listed NDC products with Medicaid activity — every brand and generic of this exact strength & form. RxNorm 1794184
20 ML chloroprocaine hydrochloride 30 MG/ML Injection
Summed across the 2 of 4 listed NDC products with Medicaid activity — every brand and generic of this exact strength & form. RxNorm 992809
Shares are of the Medicaid prescriptions shown here. Product grouping follows RxNorm (the National Library of Medicine’s drug terminology), so “one product” means one strength & dosage form regardless of manufacturer. Dollar figures are gross Medicaid reimbursement before mandatory rebates — rebates (often large, especially for brand-name drugs) are confidential, so actual net cost to Medicaid is lower than shown.
Source: Medicaid State Drug Utilization Data (CMS), aggregated by generic ingredient — summed across every NDC (all brands, strengths, salt forms and dosage forms) of Chloroprocaine, and across all states and both fee-for-service and managed-care claims. A general popularity signal; it excludes Medicare, commercial insurance and cash prescriptions, so it is not total U.S. use. Based on the 5 of 15 listed Chloroprocaine NDCs with Medicaid activity.
🔍 Compare Chloroprocaine products
A representative set of FDA-listed product records for Chloroprocaine — across manufacturers, strengths, and dosage forms, grouped by form with each product’s manufacturer and how the FDA approved it. The same medicine may be made and packaged by different companies, so a single drug can have many directory entries. (It’s also why a refill can look different — a new shape, color, or box — even though it contains the same medication.)
| Strength | Route | Manufacturer / Labeler | Category ⓘ | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 💊Eye ointment | ||||
| 24 mg/800 mg | Ophthalmic | Harrow Eye, LLC × 3 listings | NDA | View NDC → |
| 💊Injection | ||||
| 10 mg/mL | Intrathecal | B. Braun Medical Inc. | NDA | View NDC → |
| 10 mg/mL | Infiltration, Perineural | Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Infiltration, Perineural | Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Epidural, Infiltration, Intracaudal, Perineural | Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC | NDA | View NDC → |
| 30 mg/mL | Epidural, Infiltration, Intracaudal, Perineural | Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC | NDA | View NDC → |
| 10 mg/mL | Infiltration; Perineural | General Injectables & Vaccines, Inc | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Infiltration; Perineural | General Injectables & Vaccines, Inc | NDA | View NDC → |
| 10 mg/mL | Infiltration; Perineural | Henry Schein, Inc. × 2 listings | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Infiltration; Perineural | Henry Schein, Inc. × 2 listings | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Epidural, Infiltration, Intracaudal, Perineural | HF Acquisition Co LLC, DBA HealthFirst | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Infiltration, Perineural | HF Acquisition Co LLC, DBA HealthFirst | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Epidural; Infiltration; Intracaudal; Perineural | HF Acquisition Co LLC, DBA HealthFirst × 2 listings | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Infiltration; Perineural | HF Acquisition Co LLC, DBA HealthFirst | NDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Epidural, Infiltration, Intracaudal, Perineural | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 30 mg/mL | Epidural, Infiltration, Intracaudal, Perineural | Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 20 mg/mL | Epidural, Infiltration, Intracaudal, Perineural | ProPharma Distribution | ANDA | View NDC → |
| 💊Bulk drug substance | ||||
| 1 kg/kg | — | Edmond Pharma Srl | BULK INGREDIENT | View NDC → |
| 1 kg/kg | — | Siegfried Evionnaz SA | BULK INGREDIENT | View NDC → |
Showing 24 of 24 products — FDA National Drug Code Directory. See every product, package size and price: browse all 24 Chloroprocaine NDCs →
📈 Chloroprocaine side effects reported to the FDA (FAERS)
After a medicine reaches the market, patients, doctors and drugmakers can send the FDA reports of problems they think may be linked to it. Here’s what’s been reported for Chloroprocaine — a signal of what to watch for, not proof the drug caused it.
Source: openFDA, from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). These are voluntary reports — they don’t prove the drug caused the effect, and counts reflect how often something was reported, not how often it actually happens. Reports also often name the very problem the medicine is taken for — a common reason to file one is that the drug didn’t help — so for a pain reliever you may see “pain” high on the list; that points to why the report was filed, not to the drug causing the symptom. This counts every report that lists Chloroprocaine in any role, so the total runs higher than the FDA’s official dashboard, which counts only cases where the drug is the suspect. For the authoritative figures, see the FDA FAERS Public Dashboard. Always talk to your pharmacist or doctor.
🏛️ Chloroprocaine FDA approval history
How Chloroprocaine went from FDA review to the pharmacy shelf — the key milestones in its regulatory journey.
Source: Drugs@FDA.
🚨 Chloroprocaine recall history
A recall is when a specific batch of a medicine is pulled from the market — usually a manufacturing issue, not a problem with the drug itself. Class I is most serious, Class III least.
Source: openFDA drug enforcement (recall) reports.
RxNorm Concept Web — From Ingredient to Every Form and Strength
This page starts with one ingredient concept (IN). The branches below show its dose-form concepts (SCDF), then the available clinical drug and strength concepts (SCD). Combination products remain separate concepts with their own pages.
RxCUI 20859 3 dose forms · 6 strengths
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Dose form (SCDF) Injectable Solution RxCUI 371401In current FDA listingsClinical drug / strength (SCD) hydrochloride 10 MG/MLRxCUI 992801hydrochloride 20 MG/MLRxCUI 992805 -
Dose form (SCDF) Injection RxCUI 1794183In current FDA listingsClinical drug / strength (SCD) 5 ML chloroprocaine hydrochloride 10 MG/MLRxCUI 194673020 ML chloroprocaine hydrochloride 20 MG/MLRxCUI 179418420 ML chloroprocaine hydrochloride 30 MG/MLRxCUI 992809 -
Dose form (SCDF) Ophthalmic Gel RxCUI 2613955In current FDA listingsClinical drug / strength (SCD) hydrochloride 0.03 MG/MGRxCUI 2613956
Look up RxCUI 20859 in the RxCUI Atlas →
RxNorm is the U.S. National Library of Medicine’s normalized drug vocabulary. Its concept hierarchy can include forms that are not currently marketed; the status on each branch compares that concept with current FDA listings. RxCUIs identify vocabulary concepts, not individual packages or manufacturers.
📦 Chloroprocaine supply and shortage status
Whether Chloroprocaine is in short supply in the U.S. right now, plus any shortage history the FDA has on record. A shortage usually reflects a manufacturing or demand issue — not a safety problem with the drug.
Source: openFDA, from the FDA Drug Shortages database.
🏷️ Chloroprocaine brand names
🏭 Who makes Chloroprocaine: manufacturers and labelers
Chloroprocaine drug class (RxNorm)
Chloroprocaine belongs to the Ester Local Anesthetic class.
Classified by RxNorm RxClass — the U.S. National Library of Medicine's standardized drug-classification service (Established Pharmacologic Class from the FDA, the ATC drug family from the WHO, and mechanism of action). Reference only, not medical advice.
🔬 Sources for this Chloroprocaine page
Core label, product, RxNorm, safety, and utilization data on this page come from the sources identified below. AI-written, editorial, and licensed sections are labeled separately.
How we combine label and product data
HelloPharmacist combines public FDA and NLM records; we don’t author the underlying clinical facts. We identified 5 FDA-filed SPL label sets within the page’s selected clinical scope after exact ingredient or ingredient-combination matching and applicable route/form matching. The representative label is the starting point for the displayed reference monograph; the 12 largest stored in-scope SPL records, which may include that representative, are compared section by section, and the longest available version of each section is retained. Forms, routes, brands, labelers, product-listed strengths, and product-record counts are aggregated separately from ingredient-matched FDA NDC Directory records; package records listed above are associated with the linked SPL; and the normalized concept hierarchy comes from NLM RxNorm.
For canonical ingredient pages, bounded product-attributed indication and administration excerpts may be added to the AI evidence, and the generator is instructed to preserve available product, brand, route, and form qualifiers instead of treating one label as universal. Where a section is identified as AI-written, its plain-language text is generated from bounded label evidence. New draft drug pages remain in the admin review queue before first publication. Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC is the representative DailyMed label linked for verification and dates; it is not the sole source used for the page.
This is general education, not medical advice — always consult your doctor or pharmacist about your medications and any medical condition. For the exact wording of the linked representative label, view that label on DailyMed; some displayed composite sections may come from other in-scope SPL labels. Learn how we use AI and our data sources & update cadence.