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Things You Need To Know About Vioxx And Heart Disease
By Joann
Vioxx is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) which was most often prescribed for the treatment of pain caused by arthritis. This pain prescription medication was approved by the FDA in 1999 to treat severe pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis, primary dysmennorhea, and osteoarthritis. On September 30, 2004 however, Vioxx was voluntarily recalled when an internal study exposed an underlying relationship between vioxx and heart disease and stroke risks. This drug sold over twenty million prescriptions in the United States before it was pulled off the market.
As early as a year (2000) after it was approved by FDA, warnings about the possible connection between Vioxx and heart disease began when Vioxx showed to carry a greater risk of heart attack and stroke compared to another NSAID drug called naproxen. After a clinical trial conducted by Merck, the manufacturer's of Vioxx, the link between the two was finally acted upon by the company itself and recalled the drug off the market.
The three year study on the link between the two began in 2000 and was designed to test the effects of the drug on the colon, however, the approve study was blocked short due to researchers discovering that patients who were taking Vioxx for over eighteen months showed greater risk of heart disease and were two times more likely to suffer stroke than patients taking placebo.
Other studies also discovered the connection between Vioxx and heart
disease including a study found by FDA that patients taking more than twenty five milligrams of this drug were three times as likely to suffer from heart problems as were people in general population. Another study which was based on over twenty five thousand Kaiser medical group records also discovered that there was a greater risk for heart disease for patients taking Vioxx than patients taking Celebrex, a similar pain medication.
A variety of symptoms that a patient can experience from the drug and disease includes a number of adverse health problems, one of the first signs is that of extreme fatigue. Both can also be a source of heart palpitations, chest pain, shortness of breath, cyanosis (bluish discoloration of the skin and mucous membranes), swelling of bodily tissues specifically in the ankles and legs, and fainting episodes.
A person who has used the drug and shows any of the symptoms should right away seek the medical attention. In addition to the symptoms, Vioxx drug can also cause other thromboembolic events such as stroke. Several alternative treatments can help ease the caused by arthritis, menstrual cramps and other chronic pain that does not result to same side effects linked to vioxx and heart disease risks. A doctor can discuss these alternative treatments that would be right for you.
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