The vioxx has been withdrawn by the market
September 30 th 2004.
The Vioxx has shown that could increase the risk of cardiovascular troubles.
USES: This medicine is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) known as a COX-2 inhibitor used to relieve the symptoms of osteoarthritis and to treat pain and menstrual discomfort.
BEFORE USING: Some medicines or medical conditions may interact with this medicine. INFORM YOUR DOCTOR OR PHARMACIST of all prescription and over-the-counter medicine that you are taking. ADDITIONAL MONITORING OF YOUR DOSE OR CONDITION may be needed if you are taking an ACE inhibitor, an anticoagulant, furosemide, lithium, methotrexate, rifampin, thiazide diuretics, or warfarin. Inform your doctor of any other medical conditions including aspirin-sensitive asthma, allergies, pregnancy, or breast-feeding. Contact your doctor or pharmacist if you have any questions or concerns about taking this medicine.
DIRECTIONS: The usual dose of Vioxx for acute pain syndromes and menstrual cramps (primary dysmenorrhea) is 50 mg once daily for no longer than 5 days. The usual dose of Vioxx for treatment of osteoarthritis is 12.5 mg daily although some patients may benefit from 25 mg daily. The maximum daily dose should not exceed 25 mg. This medicine may be taken on an empty stomach or with food. STORE THIS MEDICINE at room temperature at 77 degrees F (25 degrees C) in a tightly-closed container, away from heat, moisture, and light. IF YOU MISS A DOSE OF THIS MEDICINE and you are taking 1 dose daily, take the missed dose if you remember the same day. Skip the missed dose if you do not remember until the next day. DO NOT take 2 doses at once.
PRECAUTIONS: DO NOT TAKE THIS MEDICINE IF YOU HAVE HAD A SEVERE ALLERGIC REACTION to aspirin or any medicine containing aspirin or to a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (such as Feldene, Motrin, Naprosyn, Clinoril). A severe reaction includes a severe rash, hives, breathing difficulties, or dizziness. If you have a question about whether you are allergic to this medicine or if a certain medicine is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, contact your doctor or pharmacist. IF YOU EXPERIENCE difficulty breathing; tightness of chest; swelling of eyelids, face, or lips; or if you develop a rash or hives, tell your doctor immediately. Do not take any more doses of this medicine unless your doctor tells you to do so. DO NOT EXCEED THE RECOMMENDED DOSE or take this medicine for longer than prescribed without checking with your doctor. KEEP ALL DOCTOR AND LABORATORY APPOINTMENTS while you are using this medicine. ALCOHOL WARNING: If you consume 3 or more alcoholic drinks every day, ask your doctor whether you should take this medicine or other pain relievers/fever reducers. This medicine may cause stomach bleeding. BEFORE YOU BEGIN TAKING ANY NEW MEDICINE, either prescription or over-the-counter, check with your doctor or pharmacist. This includes any medicines that contain ibuprofen, naproxen, or ketoprofen. FOR WOMEN: IF YOU PLAN ON BECOMING PREGNANT, discuss with your doctor the benefits and risks of using this medicine during pregnancy. IT IS UNKNOWN IF THIS MEDICINE IS EXCRETED in breast milk. DO NOT BREAST-FEED while taking this medicine.
SIDE EFFECTS: SIDE EFFECTS that may occur while taking this medicine include weakness or nausea. If they continue or are bothersome, check with your doctor. CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR AS SOON AS POSSIBLE if you experience itching or skin rash, swelling of the feet or ankles, unexpected weight gain, vomiting material that looks like coffee grounds, or blood in stool or vomit. CONTACT YOUR DOCTOR IMMEDIATELY if you experience swelling of hands, face, lips, eyes, throat, or tongue; difficulty swallowing or breathing; hoarseness; flu-like symptoms; sluggishness; yellowing of the skin or eyes; stomach pain; dark urine or pale stools; or unusual fatigue. If you notice other effects not listed above, contact your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist.
NOTES: DO NOT SHARE THIS MEDICINE with others for whom it was not prescribed. DO NOT USE THIS MEDICINE for other health conditions. KEEP THIS PRODUCT out of the reach of children. IF USING THIS MEDICINE FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME, obtain refills before your supply runs out.
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How to order this Searle wonderful new drug against pains, headache, arthritis, arthrosis, bones pain, menstrual discomfort, low price ? This is also the fruit of our searches of the suppliers of the whole world!
The theory was that if scientists could
develop a more specific drug that targeted just cox-2, it would alleviate pain and
inflammation while not bothering the stomach. Half a dozen companies began racing to
develop a better NSAID.
Searle's Celebrex, known chemically as celecoxib, is the first under FDA scrutiny. In
studies of about 13,000 patients, it appeared to work almost as well as
prescription-strength naproxen in patients with osteoarthritis. In rheumatoid arthritis
sufferers, it appeared to work almost as well as another popular NSAID, diclofenac.
But even if Celebrex isn't better than other painkillers, experts theorized it still would
sell if proved safer. So Searle gave 4,700 endoscopies -- snaking a tube into patients'
stomachs to see if ulcers were forming even before they experienced symptoms. Some 25
percent to 40 percent of patients taking ibuprofen or naproxen showed these mini-ulcers,
vs. 5 percent to 10 percent of Celebrex patients.
Celebrex is the new FDA-approved
wonderdrug which is used to treat osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
Simply amazing, it reduces pain, tenderness, stiffness and swelling in affected joints ...
so you can live a younger, healthier and much more active life.
Celecoxib (Celebrex) is one
of the first designer drugs to be marketed, and its development is typical of the advances
that modern molecular biology is bringing to the understanding and treatment of diseases.
Most of the medicines that we take for inflammation and pain are members of a class of
drugs known as nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs, NSAIDs. These include aspirin,
ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), diclofenac (Voltaren), naproxen (Naprosyn) and many others.
For many years these drugs have been very commonly used to treat minor aches and pains,
headache, and various chronic conditions such as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
These drugs all interfere with the formation of a family of natural chemicals found in
many tissues called prostaglandins, which are involved in the development of inflammation
and pain.
It has been known for a long time that prostaglandins are important in many normal
processes in our bodies, for example in maintaining a normal lining of the stomach, and
that interfering with them would produce side effects. In the case of the stomach these
can be ulcers or the inflammation known as gastritis. It has been shown many times that
people taking these drugs have a high incidence of stomach ulcerations, even if they have
no pain. These can lead to life-threatening bleeding, and NSAIDs are implicated in most
such bleeding cases that require hospital admission.
For a long time it was thought that the interference with the protective functions of
prostaglandins could not be separated from the beneficial effects against inflammation and
pain, but in recent years the identification and cloning of two genes which control
prostaglandins has made it possible to separate the beneficial effects from most of the
bad side effects. These genes have been identified as COX-1 and COX-2, and celecoxib was
synthesized to interfere only with the action of COX-2. It is therefore designated a COX-2
NSAID. All the previous NSAIDs interfered with both COX-1 and COX-2.
Studies have shown that celecoxib causes many fewer side effects in the stomach, almost at
the low level of the placebo used in the studies. It also does not interfere with the
proper functioning of our blood platelets, which the other NSAIDs do, and will therefore
probably be shown to be safe in cases where bleeding is a problem, or immediately prior to
surgery, when most surgeons make their patients stop any NSAIDs they may be taking. Other
less common NSAID side effects such as interference with kidney function and confusion
have not yet been fully studied.
Celecoxib (a new aspirin?) has been shown to be as effective as the earlier NSAIDs in the
treatment of mild to moderate pain, and chronic inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid
arthritis, arthrosis, pain bones.
Subsequently Vioxx has been retired from the market.
