Vioxx Press Releases

Senate hearing investigates Vioxx, Merck, and FDA actions

18 Nov 2004
Senator Charles Grassley(R-Ohio), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, accused the FDA of ignoring warnings of potential hazards from use of the drug before it was pulled from the market. The warnings came from the FDA's own scientists. He said the even before Vioxx went on the market there were "red flags" within Merck's organization that raised concerns over the drug's safety.

FDA Researcher Says Supervisors Delayed Vioxx Study That Found Cardiovascular Risks

04 Nov 2004
Dr David Graham, associate director for science in the Office of Drug Safety at FDA, alleged in a "series of testy e-mail exchanges" that agency officials "delayed and demeaned" the results of a study he conducted that found Vioxx -- a COX-2 inhibitor that Merck withdrew from the market in September over safety concerns -- can increase patient risk for cardiovascular problems, the New York Times reports. [MEDICAL NEWS TODAY]

Vioxx scare raises more questions about pills

Last update: October 25, 2004
With the recent decision to pull Vioxx off the market, patients are left doubting the safety of all COX-2 inhibitors, such as Bextra and Celebrex. Patients ask: "Should I continue the treatment or see if I can go without it?" "If I take it, will I jeopardize my heart's health?"

Vioxx-Type Drugs May Not Have Same Risk-Regulator

Wed Oct 20, 2004 05:26 PM ET
CLEVELAND (Reuters) - Pain relievers in the same class as Vioxx may not carry the same cardiovascular risk as the blockbuster drug that was withdrawn from the market three weeks ago, a U.S. regulator said on Wednesday. [REUTERS]

2nd Arthritis Drug Under Scrutiny

NEW YORK, Oct. 19, 2004
(CBS/AP) Pfizer Inc. plans a major study to see if its anti-arthritis medication, Celebrex, increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. The announcement comes three weeks after Merck & Co. pulled Vioxx, a rival arthritis medication, from the market because the drug doubled the risk of heart attack and strokes in patients taking the medication longer than 18 months. [CBS NEWS]

Merck Evaluating Why Vioxx Raises Risk to Heart

Mon Oct 18, 2004 10:11 PM ET
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Merck & Co Inc. is evaluating why its withdrawn painkiller Vioxx raises the chance of heart attack and stroke, but it has not found a mechanism of action, a company official said on Monday. [REUTERS]

Merck's Missing Vioxx Study

10.14.04, 11:30 AM ET
NEW YORK - Should Merck have conducted a bigger trial to test the safety of its arthritis drug Vioxx? [FORBES]

FDA accused of silencing Vioxx warnings

Friday, October 8, 2004 Posted: 11:40 AM EDT (1540 GMT)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Food and Drug Administration silenced one of its drug experts who raised safety concerns weeks before Merck & Co. yanked the blockbuster drug Vioxx due to increased risks for heart attack and strokes, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee said Thursday.

The Vioxx warning

October 10, 2004
FOR FOUR years, researchers have been pointing to disturbing signs that the popular painkilling drug Vioxx causes heart attacks and strokes with long-term use. Last week the pharmaceutical giant Merck voluntarily withdrew the drug from the market after a recent study confirmed this side effect. [BOSTON.COM]

FDA Denies Trying to Block Vioxx Results

Fri 8 October, 2004 16:42
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration denied charges it tried to suppress a safety official's findings that painkiller Vioxx, which was pulled from the market last week, raised heart attack risks. [REUTERS]

FDA Study Estimates Vioxx Linked to 27,000 Heart Attacks

October 6, 2004: 4:43 a.m. EST
WASHINGTON -- A study led by a Food and Drug Administration safety official projects that the widespread use of Vioxx may have led to more than 27,000 heart attacks and sudden cardiac deaths before the drug's abrupt withdrawal last week by Merck & Co. (MRK), Wednesday's Wall Street Journal reported.

Report: FDA Study Faults Merck's Vioxx

10/6/2004 8:33 AM EDT
An unreleased Food and Drug Administration study reportedly concludes that Merck's (MRK:NYSE - news - research) recently recalled arthritis drug Vioxx may have been responsible for more than 27,000 heart attacks and sudden cardiac deaths in recent years. [THE STREET]

Medical Professionals Say Vioxx Case Reflects FDA's Lack of Oversight

Merck & Co.'s move to pull its Vioxx painkiller from the market last week triggered questions about whether the Food and Drug Administration can assure the safety of the nation's medicines. A number of prominent researchers and physicians said the withdrawal of the widely used drug was long overdue. And they faulted the FDA for not acting sooner, citing evidence available four years ago of increased patient risk of heart attack and stroke. [NNS]

Vioxx lawsuits may focus on FDA warning in 2001

Tuesday, October 5, 2004
Keith Stubblefield went to his doctor complaining of headaches and back pain in February 2001. He left the office with samples of Vioxx and a prescription for more. A month later, while cleaning his truck at a local car wash, the 37-year-old had a heart attack. Two days later he died. [SF GATE]

Merck Announces Voluntary Worldwide Withdrawal of VIOXX®

WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J., Sept. 30, 2004—Merck & Co., Inc. today announced a voluntary worldwide withdrawal of VIOXX® (rofecoxib), its arthritis and acute pain medication. The company’s decision, which is effective immediately, is based on new, three-year data from a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial, the APPROVe (Adenomatous Polyp Prevention on VIOXX) trial. [VIOXX.COM]

Vioxx study finds arthritis drug increases heart attack risk

(PRWEB) September 1, 2004 -- An FDA financed study presented at an epidemiologists conference in Bordeaux, France on August 25, 2004 suggested Vioxx patients have a 50 percent greater chance of suffering heart attacks and sudden cardiac death than patients using a rival drug Celebrex. Sudden cardiac death is the largest cause of death in the United States.[PR WEB]

Life after Vioxx: What should you do?

ANN ARBOR, MI - Yesterday's announcement that the drug Vioxx was being pulled from pharmacy shelves because of heart and stroke risks left a lot of pain patients stunned, confused and worried. Some are even wondering if they should abandon medications that are in the same family as Vioxx.[UMHS]

Register Your Vioxx Case

If you or a loved one has experienced heart attack, stroke or sudden death while taking Vioxx, please register your complaint with a [VIOXX LAWYER]. Your case will be evaluated for free.


Vioxx Recall | About Vioxx | Vioxx Lawyer | Vioxx Side Effects | Vioxx Refund
Vioxx Press Releases | Vioxx Alternatives | Vioxx and the FDA | Vioxx and TV