Subsequent Event (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended			0 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Mar. 10, 2015	Mar. 09, 2015
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Proceeds from sale of business	$ 89,624,000	$ 0	$ 0
Common stock price (in usd per share)	$ 1.37
Zohydro ER [Member] | Line of Credit [Member] | Oxford Finance Corporation And Silicon Valley Bank [Member]
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Total debt including termination fees	23,300,000
Subsequent Event [Member] | Zohydro ER [Member]
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Proceeds from sale of business				30,000,000.0
Restricted cash and cash equivalents				3,000,000.0
Indemnification period				12 months
Consideration received, promissory note				50,000,000
Consideration received, common stock				20,000,000.0
Common stock price (in usd per share)					$ 11.89
Promissory note maturity period				4 months
Promissory note extension term, discretion of Pernix				2 months
Promissory note, extension term, intellectual property matters				4 months
Proceeds from promissory note to be deposited into escrow				7,000,000
Indemnification claims				5,000,000
Potential cash payments				283,500,000.0
Potential regulatory milestone payments				12,500,000.0
Potential sale milestone payments				$ 271,000,000
Registration statement filing period				5 months
Agreed time to hold stock				6 months
Non-compete agreement term				5 years
Closing extension period				60 days