Bextra Heart Attack info Based on a report by Steve Sternberg, USA TODAY
November 9, 2004 15:11

On November 9, 2004, a study was released regarding heart attacks from Bextra use. The study showed that arthritis drug Bextra more than doubled a patient's heart attack and stroke risks. Of course, Pfizer, who sells over $600,000,000 worth of the drug each year, was not without a response about the allegations of Bextra heart attacks.

The study found that patients who were taking Bextra were more than twice as likely to have a heart attack or stroke than patients taking a sugar pill. If true, this would make Bextra a heart attack risk.

This made Bextra heart attacks risks look even more dangerous than Vioxx, which was recently pulled by Merck due to its high risk of causing stroke and heart attacks. Now, Bextra's risk of heart attack appeares even worse.

In the Bextra study, the highest risk of a Bextra heart attack was seen in patients who had had bypass operations, indicating that heart patients may be particularly vulnerable to any ill effects. However, the risk of a Bextra heart attack does not end there. According to Dr. Garret FitzGerald, lead author of the study, and a doctor at the University of Pennsylvania, his findings may cause the FDA to require a stronger warning from Pfizer regarding the risks of a Bextra heart attack. It is now suspected by some that all Cox-2 inhibitors may be dangerous and may cause an increased risk of heart attacks.

Pfizer, who stands to lose millions if this study's conclusions about Bextra heart attacks are validated, said that the report drew "unsubstantiated conclusions" about Bextra's safety and was "based on information that has not been published in a medical journal or subject to independent scientific review."

However, the pattern we are seeing from these Cox-2 drugs with respect to heart attacks is hard to ignore and patients should be careful.

Steve Sternberg, USA TODAY

Matthew Herper, 11.10.04, 5:09 PM ET: On November 10, 2004, according to Forbes Magazine, "Pfizer was blindsided as The New York Times reported information about a reanalysis of old data that say the drug giant's Bextra, which is similar to Merck's Vioxx, increased the risk of heart attacks and strokes."...

NY Times November 10 2004: By G. HARRIS: According to the New York times, a study published on November 9, 2004 demonstrated that the incidence of heart attacks and strokes among patients given Pfizer's drug Bextra was more than double that of those given placebos (sugar pills). A "more than double" risk is very significant because this triggers FDA action. Warnings need to be issued. The study which was released on November 9, 2004, at the American Heart Association meeting in New Orleans, was compiled from 12 clinical trials. Looking back at 5,930 patients the researches revealed that 2.19 times the number of heart attacks or strokes among patients given Bextra, compared with those given placebos.

If you want to know what Pfizer is saying about the article linking its drug Bextra to strokes and heart attacks? Consider that Pfizer is selling $600,000,000 worth of the drug, and then see what they have to say below. Pfizer Statement on Bextra(R) (Valdecoxib) Wednesday November 10, 1:55 pm ET: NEW YORK, Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pfizer Inc said a New York Times article published today draws unsubstantiated conclusions about the cardiovascular safety of its COX-2 medicine Bextra and is based on information that has not been published in a medical journal or subject to independent scientific review. In contrast, the White et al. analysis published earlier this year in the peer-reviewed American Journal of Therapeutics(1) stated that short-and intermediate-term treatment with Bextra was not associated with an increased incidence of thrombotic events relative to nonselective NSAIDs or placebo in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis patients. This conclusion was based on evaluation of a clinical trials database that includes nearly 8,000 patients treated with Bextra for durations ranging from 6 to 52 weeks. ...

Newswire has the full text.