First Vioxx trial ends in mistrial

The first federal Vioxx trial in Houston has ended in a mistrial, according to Reuters, after the jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict in the case - an outcome that was expected. This is, of course, great news for tens of thousands of Vioxx victims who now have a stronger chance of presenting their case. The New England Journal of Medicine has revealed that Merck misrepresented the risk of Vioxx by not reporting the number of deaths from the VIGOR trial.

The lawsuit was filed by Evelyn Irvin Plunkett in the death of her husband Richard "Dicky" Irvin. In this particular case, a major point of debate was if Vioxx could cause a fatal heart attack if taken for less than 18 months, as Merck contends. Doctors had argued that the drug could cause a heart attack even if taken only occasionally and as soon as the drug was taken. A decision in Merck's favor in this case, while it would have been appealed due to new information now available (but not available to the jurors in this case), would have been a setback to those victims who claim that they had cardiovascular problems as soon as they took the drug.

As Merck faces new credibility issues, the company is hitting back. "If a retrial is scheduled we will be right back with the same facts," says Kenneth Frazier, senior vice president and general counsel of Merck, in a written statement. "The VIOXX litigation will go on for years. We have the resources and the resolve to address these cases, one by one, in a reasonable and responsible manner," he added, repeating the line that the company has been using since the day the drug was recalled last year.

The next Vioxx trial will begin early next year.

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