On April 7, 2005, Health Canada
asked Pfizer to immediately suspend sales of its drug after
the drugmaker had been forced to remove Bextra from the U.S.
and European markets. Even in the days leading up to the recall,
the manufacturer continued to stand behind the safety of the
drug in spite of adding a warning in October 2004 that the
drug increased the occurrence of heart problems in high risk
patients.
In defending the safety of the
drug, Pfizer frequently cited a clinical trial that concluded
Bextra was not associated with an increased risk of heart
attacks and strokes. That study, however, monitored Bextra
users only for a short period of time (up to 52 weeks). It
is believed that the risk of heart attack and stroke rises
with longer use—in fact, many of the reports of problems with Vioxx patients occurred after 18 months. |