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Bextra Arthritis

After the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Bextra in 2001 for treating the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis and adult rheumatoid arthritis, the marriage of Bextra and arthritis is now officially over after what some patients and doctors are calling "a painful divorce." While Bextra and arthritis were "together," Bextra offered 24-hour arthritis pain relief in a single, daily 10-milligram dose. In clinical trials involving more than 5,000 patients, Bextra demonstrated equal success while offering much improved gastrointestinal safety and tolerability versus conventional NSAIDs such as naproxen, ibuprofen, and diclofenac.

With the approval of Bextra and arthritis treatment, people with arthritis pain had a new, easy treatment option. Bextra gave arthritis patients pain relief comparable to the prescription-strength drug naproxen, but with a significantly improved gastrointestinal safety profile. What the FDA didn't realize at the time was that Bextra also had the potential to cause heart attacks and strokes along with other cardiovascular risks.

With most patients growing weary with concern about taking Bextra, and arthritis symptoms not getting any better, sales of Bextra began to decrease. On April 7, 2005, the FDA asked Pfizer Incorporated to remove Bextra from the market. While some patients taking Bextra for arthritis looked for another treatment, doctors were in a state of confusion.

Medical professionals expressed disbelief and concern at the FDA's announcement that the prescription painkiller Bextra would be withdrawn from the market, and that a host of other effective analgesics will now come with tough "black box" labeling warning of their potential cardiovascular and gastrointestinal risks.

While the FDA looks at the recall as a safety measure, physicians lose another instrumental drug in helping patients fight arthritis. Some physicians question whether or not the decision to prescribe Bextra for arthritis would be better left to individual doctors instead of a federal agency.

Doctors may argue that the FDA is taking away doctor-patient decision-making. They argue that they could allow Bextra to be sold with warnings and it would then be a doctor-patient decision. Doctors also argue that the average consumer is going to be confused and the average physician is somewhat confused about a replacement for Bextra and arthritis treatment.

The recall of Bextra came less than two months after expert advisory panels suggested that the COX-2 drugs Celebrex and Bextra stay on the market, under the condition that enhanced warnings be placed on the boxes. Once the FDA asked Pfizer Inc. to remove Bextra from the market, they also mandated strong black-box warning labels for Pfizer's Celebrex, the only drug in the COX-2 class still available to consumers.

If you or a loved one has been prescribed Bextra for arthritis in the past and suffered a heart attack, stroke, or gastrointestinal distress, you may have a claim. While Bextra and arthritis may have seemed like a good combination at first, the side effects have proven deadly. Contact an experienced Bextra attorney for help with your claim and receive due compensation.

More Bextra Resources

Bextra Consumer Information - Patient FAQ on Bextra, including side effects, warnings and drug information from the FDA.