Vioxx recall??

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I just got a breaking news alert saying Vioxx was being recalled. I wonder what that is all about?

Specializes in Cardiology.

They just said on the news last night that Celebrex and Naprelan have not gone through the long term studies that Vioxx just completed. I'm sure we can expect similar studies with them as well.

...Jennifer...

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Specializes in Camp/LTC/School/Hospital.

It is really scarey.I can and has happened to over meds bsing recalled before. The price of staying healthy can also kill you. :o

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My hubby takes Celebrex...I wonder if a similar long term study will show similar outcomes. Too bad because these arthritis meds have helped so many people with management of chronic pain.Good to know about the Naprelan as it may be a good substitute as a long acting NSAID.

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I can take Naproxen or Ibruprofen for two or three days max, after that I get really bad stomach pain. I wonder what effect the slow release would have? I recently took Advil twice a day for about 10 days. It took over two weeks for the GI distress to settle down.

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Specializes in Medical.

I have the press release in front of me and it sounds as though it's a world-wide recall. According to the release:

"there was an increased risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attack and stroke beginning 18 months after treatment, in the patient taking Vioxx 25mg once daily.

"Compared with taking a placebo, there was one extra of these sorts of events for each 65 patients who took Vioxx ofr at least 18 months. In the study the fatality rate was not increased..."

The release also says that there was an article in the October 2003 Australian Adverse Drug Reactions Bulletin showing increased risk of cardiovacular and cerebrovascular disease with daily doses higher than 25mg.

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I can take Naproxen or Ibruprofen for two or three days max, after that I get really bad stomach pain. I wonder what effect the slow release would have? I recently took Advil twice a day for about 10 days. It took over two weeks for the GI distress to settle down.

Same problem here.Food helps but not completely. I woud probably gain 30# on the longsacting NSAID's trying to counteract the GI effects... and the extra weight would only further aggravate my arthritis. :uhoh3:

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Specializes in Anesthesia.

I know I'm a ninny, but this Vioxx recall is a prime example of why I am totally leary of taking any drug which has been on the market for less than 10-12 years. It's scary what some of this stuff does, and most lay people don't realize at all that when a drug is newly released, for the first 7 years (give or take) it is still under investigation. They don't realize that they are actually taking part in an "experiment". Give me the good, old, been-around-forever, tried and true meds!

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Specializes in Medical-Surgical.
I can take Naproxen or Ibruprofen for two or three days max, after that I get really bad stomach pain. I wonder what effect the slow release would have? I recently took Advil twice a day for about 10 days. It took over two weeks for the GI distress to settle down.

Is it a short-acting naproxen or a long-acting controlled release naproxen?

Short-acting medications release large amount of the active drugs hence the incidence od side effect are higher. Long acting or controlled release preparations only release therapeutic level of the active drugs thereby incidence of side effect are minimal.

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pfizer affirms celebrex safety in response to withdrawal of merck's vioxx

01 oct 2004blanktab.gif

in response to merck & co.'s announcement today of the worldwide withdrawal of its cox-2 medicine vioxx, pfizer inc issued the following statement:

over 27 million patients in the united states have been prescribed celebrex (celecoxib), which was approved by the u.s. food and drug administration in 1998.

"pfizer is confident in the long-term cardiovascular safety of celebrex," said dr. joe feczko, pfizer's president of worldwide development.

in a recent fda-sponsored study of 1.4 million patients, those who received celebrex demonstrated no increased risk of cardiac events.

"patients taking cox-2 inhibitors may be confused and should speak with their doctors," dr. feczko said. "because of its outstanding long-term safety profile and broad indication base including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and acute pain, celebrex is an appropriate treatment alternative."

celebrex was the first cox-2 inhibitor, a class of medicine designed to relieve pain without the serious gastrointestinal side effects associated with older non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines. in 2001, pfizer introduced bextra (valdecoxib), its second cox-2 inhibitor, for use in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. bextra's cardiovascular safety profile is also well established in long-term studies.

data show that since the introduction of cox-2 inhibitors, the rate of hospitalizations for gastrointestinal events associated with long-term arthritis treatment has declined significantly.

http://www.celebrex.com

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=14291

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I know I'm a ninny, but this Vioxx recall is a prime example of why I am totally leary of taking any drug which has been on the market for less than 10-12 years. It's scary what some of this stuff does, and most lay people don't realize at all that when a drug is newly released, for the first 7 years (give or take) it is still under investigation. They don't realize that they are actually taking part in an "experiment". Give me the good, old, been-around-forever, tried and true meds!

You're not a ninny. You're absolutely right. These days you do have to wait at least 10 years. Otherwise, you're just a human guinae pig.

Where the hell is the FDA? Why aren't these studies completed BEFORE these drugs released?

Of course, with the anti-depressents, they HAD the data, they just buried it. So, who knows if more studies would do any good anyway since they won't tell us about it.

It's outrageous.

:angryfire

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WOW!!!!! :stone

This explains alot to me. I was hospitalized a few weeks ago with chest pain. I actually went from my clinic to the ER then to in pt setting. I had to have a cath which was perfectly normal. No one could figure out why the chest pain. It felt like someone was squeezing my heart in the hand. I was terrified!!!!!

I wonder now could it be realted to the fact that I had been given Viox after a car accident where my tail bone was broken??? I have read all of these posts and according to them this was associated with long term usage. But, I had only been taking it for 2 weeks (25 mg BID given as samples from my doctor after I was diagnosed.)

I really did not associate the two incidents but I did stop taking it in the hospital and did not start again.

Again I say WOW!! :stone

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