Vioxx

There are a lot of anti-inflammatory drugs in the market nowadays that cater to both men and women. One of the most common ones is the Vioxx brand, produced and manufactured by Merck.

Vioxx is actually a brand name of a generic drug called Rofecoxib. Rofecoxib is basically a NSAID or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug that is developed and manufactured by Merck and Company. This drug primarily treats acute pain, osteoarthritis, and also dysmenorrhea. On May 20, 1999, the drug has been proven effective and safe by the Food and Drug Administration, or the FDA.

Vioxx has gained worldwide acceptance by doctors that treat patients suffering from arthritis and some other medical conditions that cause acute or chronic pain. A whooping eight million patients worldwide were prescribed with this drug at almost the same time.

However, on the 30th of September 2004, Merck and Company has finally volunteered to withdraw Vioxx from the pharmaceutical market because there were a lot of concerns regarding the risks of heart attacks as well as strokes that are directly associates with the long-term and high-dosage use of this certain drug. Accordingly, Vioxx or Rofecoxib was the world’s most widely used medication ever recorded to be taken out from the pharmaceutical market, with a sales revenue totaling to 2.5 billion dollars.

What Is Rofecoxib?

This is a class of a drug that is called NSAIDs, or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The drug works by decreasing the substances that plays a part in the pain, the inflammation, as well as fever on the patient’s body. These drugs are also used to reduce the stiffness of patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis as well as osteoarthiritis. Likewise, they are the ones that help in lessening menstrual cramps on women, and headaches for migraine patients.

Vioxx Side Effects

Studies show that the side effects when one takes Vioxx include severe abdominal pain, discomfort or tenderness, bloody or even black stools, heartburn and nausea, presence of blood in your vomit, unexplainable weight gain, water retention or swelling, unusual fatigue, itching or skin rashes, yellowing of the eyes and the skin, and unusual bleeding or bruising. Some patients also experience dizziness, mild fatigue, weakness, and diarrhea.

The VIGOR Study- This is the Vioxx GI Outcomes Research study that compared the adverse effects and the efficacy of naproxen and rofecoxib found in Vioxx. It has indicated that there is a very high risk of heart attack in patients having rofecoxib.

With the growing number of Vioxx injury cases, the Vioxx lawyers have finally decided to let the company withdraw from their production of this certain drug.

In an official statement of Merck and Co., the company has always maintained on its commitment to produce drugs at the most excellent standard, scientific wise. Because the have always believed that the safety of their patients is their number one concern, they feel the need of voluntarily withdrawing Vioxx from the market, in efforts to remain true to their word of putting their patients at the top most of their priorities.

Though Vioxx is no longer produced and available in the market today, Merck and Company have continued to expand their research and studies that deal with drugs to further cater to their clients. The company has remained steadfast to its commitment to be responsible to their customers, to their employees and respective families, to the environment that they inhibit, and to society that they serve globally. Their business is to preserve and to improve the human life that is why; they are doing their best to serve everybody who can avail from using the company’s products as well as their services.

Merck and Company has indeed done the noblest thing to do: putting their clients at their top most priority.