Vioxx Recall Details

Vioxx is a prescribed drug that is used to treat patients suffering from arthritis and acute pain. Vioxx was manufactured by Merck & Co. and originally approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) in May 1999. Vioxx was seen as a replacement for a previous drug called Aleve. The information below details the events that led up to the Vioxx recall in 2004 and the subsequent law suits that have since been placed.

A new drug called Vioxx is approved by the FDA. Vioxx is hot on the heels of a similar drug released by Pfizer and called Celebrex. Both of these new drugs were Cox-2 inhibitors, used primarily in the treatment of arthritis.

The crunch date for Vioxx arrived in June 2000 where it is stated for the record that Merck & Co. provided the DFA with the VIGOR studies for the Vioxx drug. In these studies it was allegedly shown that Vioxx users were up to five times more likely to suffer from a heart attack than users of the previous drug, Aleve.

In 2001, the FDR sent an official warning letter to Merck & Co. which mentioned that Merck & Co. had misrepresented the safety profile of the Vioxx drug. This was followed up in 2002 when the FDA officially changed the warning label on the Vioxx drug packages, this warning suggested that there was an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.

In May 2002, Carol Ernst decides to sue Merck & Co. by alleging that the Vioxx drug accelerated the death of her husband , Robert Ernst. Mr Ernst was considered a healthy individual who was know to run marathons.

Eventually in 2004, this well known and heavily prescribed drug called Vioxx taken off the shelves and removed from sale. At the time, the Vioxx recall was extremely big news as it was alleged that continued use of Vioxx increased a users risk of heart attack or stroke.

Following the Vioxx recall, a large number of lawsuits were raised against the manufacturer of the Vioxx drug by previous users before the Vioxx recall.