Vioxx victims are heaving a sigh of relief and attorneys fighting on their behalf now have a better chance of getting justice now that Merck has admitted that it has no evidence for its argument that the drug causes no harm if taken for less than 18 months. It means that many more victims that have suffered after taking the painkiller can have their day in court.

Looks as if we may be coming to some kind of a settlement about the controversy about how dangerous Vioxx is for short-term users of the drug. Merck had claimed all along that Vioxx did not cause an injury if used for less than 18 months. In a complete reversal, the company is now agreeing with independent experts like David Graham and Benedict Lucchessi who have all along said that even occasional or rare use of the arthritis drug could trigger a heart attack or stroke.

In a press release, Merck says that it is merely correcting a description of a statistical method. However, a careful review of the statement shows that the company has no basis left to deny compensation to the family members of approximately 60,000 Americans that have died after taking the drug. Many more have suffered heart attacks and strokes

Since the recall of the drug in September of 2004, Merck has engaged in a concerted campaign to deny that Vioxx was a dangerous drug and may have killed tens of thousands of people in America alone. The company is already facing as many as 11,500 lawsuits and many more are being filed each day as the deadline for filing approaches.

Related article: Vioxx victim wins $32 million in damages for personal injury

Short term Vioxx users hurt

What Dr. Bernard Lucchesi said several months ago has been proved right. According to a study by Linda E. Lévesque, James M. Brophy, and Bin Zhang and published in a prestigious medical journal in Canada, a quarter of patients who suffered a heart attack while taking Vioxx did so within the first two weeks of their first prescription. Prof. Lévesque, of Queen's Department of Community Health and Epidemiology says, "This demonstrates that cardiovascular risks from taking Vioxx may occur much earlier than previously believed."

Dr. Lucchesi, a top cardiologist in the world, claimed that even intermittent use can cause a heart attack. He went so far to say that someone who has taken Vioxx even once may be at risk. This is in complete contrast to Merck's position that one has to take the painkiller for at least 18 months to suffer a heart attack. In fact, Merck has even won three lawsuits using that argument.

Merck is currently facing over 11,500 lawsuits and is expected to pay tens of billions in dollars in liabilities for causing the death of as many as 60,000 Americans who took the drug.

Victims of Vioxx have until September of this year to file a lawsuit against Merck and attorneys are reportedly signing up plaintiffs who took the drug only for a short period of time. For a while it seemed that short-term Vioxx users had no chance of receiving compensation from the firm.

Related reading

Scientists attack Merck's credibility

Vioxx safety doubted by British medical journal