Researchers confirm Vioxx nearly doubled cardiovascular risks in cancer prevention study
HOUSTON - The largest prospective trial ever examining the anti-inflammatory drug Vioxx as a chemoprevention agent found that the risk of developing a cardiovascular "event" - heart attacks and/or strokes - was almost double in patients who received the drug, compared to patients who took the placebo, according to a study out Feb. 15 on-line in The New England Journal of Medicine. ......The risk...Study estimates number of excess cases of coronary heart disease caused by Vioxx
The arthritis drug Vioxx could have caused an estimated 88,000-140,000 excess cases of serious coronary heart disease in the USA since its launch in 1999, concludes a study published online by THE LANCET. ......Vioxx (rofecoxib) belongs to a class of cyclo-oxygenase 2 (COX-2) inhibitor selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), which are prescribed for the treatment of arthritis....Vioxx went mostly to patients who didn't need it, Stanford researcher says
... ...STANFORD, Calif. - When Vioxx began being sold in 1999, it was touted for relieving pain without causing the gastritis and ulcers that some people developed from taking ibuprofen, naproxen and other painkillers known as non-selective non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs....... But over the next four years, it turned out that Vioxx was adopted way beyond that market niche: mill...Study shows drugs such as Vioxx and Celebrex were widely over-used long before recent problems
Even before making the connection between drugs such as Vioxx and heart attacks, many doctors were becoming concerned that the heavily advertised drugs known as COX-2 inhibitors were being over-used, often by patients unlikely to benefit from this costly but innovative pharmaceutical class. ...... , researchers from the University of Chicago and Stanford University School of Medicine use data fr...Penn epidemiological study shows difference in cardiovascular effects between Vioxx and Celebrex
(Philadelphia, PA) -- In the first epidemiological study designed and executed specifically to determine the heart-attack risk associated with COX-2 inhibitors rofecoxib (Vioxx) and celecoxib (Celebrex), researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine found a greater risk of heart attack associated with Vioxx than Celebrex, although neither of the two drugs showed a statistically...New research published online by THE LANCET highlights how there was enough evidence 4 years ago to justify the removal of Vioxx from the pharmaceutical market. ...... The cyclo-oxygenase 2 (COX-2) inhibitor rofecoxib (Vioxx) was withdrawn by Merck on September 30 2004 because of adverse cardiovascular effects identified by the unpublished Adenomatous Polyp Prevention on Vioxx (APPROVe) study. An...This release is also available in <a href="http://www.eurekalert.org/staticrel.php?view=LancetVEu...">German. Last week's dramatic withdrawal of the COX-2 inhibitor rofecoxib (Vioxx) is discussed in this week's lead editorial, which comments that more vigilant drug licensing is vital to prevent the endangering of patients' health. ...... The relative paucity of data at the time drug's come onto...