Yahoo! News is reporting that: Beleaguered drug maker Merck & Co.’s request to postpone the next trial over its withdrawn painkiller Vioxx was turned down Monday by the New Jersey judge presiding over the case. Superior Court Judge Carol E. Higbee, who is overseeing nearly 2,500 Vioxx product liability cases that have been filed in…
Category Archives: Cox-2 Inhibitors
Merck considers limited settlements
Here’s the latest on Merck from the Seattle Times: Merck will consider settling a limited number of lawsuits over its withdrawn painkiller Vioxx, a spokesman said yesterday. The drug’s link to heart attacks and strokes has spawned thousands of lawsuits and last week’s $253 million jury verdict in Texas. Thursday morning, Merck said that as…
Vioxx Timeline
TheStreet.com has a great Vioxx Timeline (1998-2005) on its site. Here’s the beginning: November 1998: Merck submits an application to the Food and Drug Administration seeking approval for the Cox-2 inhibitor drug Vioxx as a treatment for osteoarthritis, on the basis of clinical trials involving 5,400 patients. Merck says rates of cardiovascular risk were “similar”…
Australians boosted by Vioxx verdict
Australians are elated by how well the first Vioxx trial turned out: “Hundreds of Australians pursuing legal action against an arthritis drug maker have been given a boost after hefty damages were awarded in the United States.” “Between 250,000 and 300,000 Australians were taking Vioxx when it was pulled off shelves last September after tests…
First Vioxx case a multi-million dollar success!
A jury has just awared the widow of a Texas man $253.4 million in the first ever Vioxx trial: ANGLETON, Texas – A Texas jury found pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. liable Friday for the death of a man who took the once-popular painkiller Vioxx, awarding his widow $253.4 million in damages in the first…
Merck hid Vioxx dangers for a decade, says lawyer
Did Merck hide facts about Vioxx for years? Merck & Co. Inc. for years hid clinical evidence that showed Vioxx posed a heart attack risk, said the lawyer for the plaintiff in the first state civil trial against drugmaker’s popular painkiller. “We’ve seen a decade of deception by Merck,” Mark Lanier told the jury in…
Vioxx might be put back on the shelves in Canada
Forbes is reporting (via AP) that a Canadian panel is recommending Vioxx be put back on the market: An expert panel is recommending that Health Canada allow the controversial painkiller Vioxx back onto the market. By a 12-1 vote, panel members concluded the benefits of Vioxx in providing pain relief outweigh the increased risk of…
Fifty in France Seek Damages Over Vioxx
Yahoo News is reporting that fifty people in France are seeking damages over Vioxx: PARIS – A group of about 50 French people said Monday that they will file a class action lawsuit against U.S. pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. after suffering heart attacks and strokes that they allege were caused by the painkiller Vioxx….
Medical whistleblowers speak out against FDA
EurekaAlert has published a very interesting article about medical whistleblowers speaking out… The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was “the single greatest obstacle to doing anything effective” about Vioxx, said FDA drug safety officer David Graham at an unprecedented roundtable of medical whistleblowers sponsored by the Public Library of Science (PLoS) and the Government…
New research on COX-2 inhibitors
A UPenn study is pointing to new evidnece to explain how COX-2 inhibitors can lead to heart disease and stroke. Here’s a bit of the news report: PHILADELPHIA, May 24 (AScribe Newswire) — University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine researchers have found additional evidence that may help explain how selective inhibitors of COX-2 might predispose…