Surprise, Surprise, Surprise.....The Merck Madness Continues.

All 3 of my regular readers may remember my earlier rant about the string of lawsuits facing Merck and its myocardial infarction inducing wonder drug, Vioxx. Merck has insisted throughout the legal process that the best scientific evidence showed Vioxx had no increased risk for heart problems unless it was used for more than 18 months, but pesky juries had this annoying habit of awarding damages to people who took the drug for shorter periods of time. Obviously a case of "jackpot justice" as our Republican friends would like to say, people ignoring the evidence to sock it to a deep pocketed corporation and deliver undeserved big awards to someone with the bad manners to complain that a loved one was dead. Maybe, or maybe those juries knew a thing or two about the trustworthiness of corporate America. From today's New York Times:

Merck Admits a Data Error on Vioxx

In an admission that could undermine one of its core defenses in Vioxx-related lawsuits, Merck said yesterday that it had erred when it reported in early 2005 that a crucial statistical test showed that Vioxx caused heart problems only after 18 months of continuous use.

That statistical analysis test does not support Merck's 18-month theory about Vioxx, the company acknowledged yesterday.

Outside scientists said yesterday that Merck's admission, when considered along with other clinical trials of the drug and studies tracking real-world Vioxx use, supports critics' longstanding claims that Vioxx caused heart problems quickly.

"There never was any evidence for the 18-month story," said Dr. Alastair J. J. Wood, a drug safety expert at Vanderbilt University.

Well, well, well. A "data error" that doesn't get caught for over a year? Didn't their arithmetic teacher ever talk to them about the importance of checking their work? Mrs. Keller drilled that into the drugnazi's head back in the 5th grade. Of course I'm not a corporate bastard whose "error" may provide me an excuse for not taking responsibility for some dead people.

In other COX-2 news, we have this:

Celebrex Ads Are Back, Dire Warnings and All

The ads for the Pfizer painkiller Celebrex feature a man holding a boy's hand as they walk up a stadium staircase. "52 steps won't keep you from taking him out to the ballgame," they say.

But a heart attack would.

Each ad includes a boldface warning that begins, "Important Information: Celebrex may increase the chance of a heart attack or stroke that can lead to death."

As it resumes ads for the controversial medicine, Pfizer, the world's biggest drug maker, is offering consumers a decidedly mixed message. But 16 months after the company stopped advertising Celebrex over concerns about its heart risks, Pfizer has returned to the consumer ad market in hopes of reviving sales of the drug, which plunged last year during the ad moratorium.

The new campaign in magazines has raised the ire of consumer groups, who say that Celebrex is so dangerous that Pfizer should stop selling it, not encourage patients to use it.

So with one hand Big Pharma is getting ready to write some big checks to people it's COX-2 inhibitors have been found responsible for killing, and with the other it's getting ready to start shoving that exact same category of drugs down your throat once again. Be careful out there folks, it's a dangerous world, and you sure as hell can't count on others to be looking out for you.

you can read both articles here and here.