How to File a claim for Celebrex injury
By Jefferson Highway, General Counsel |
There is mounting evidence to suggest that Celebrex (aka celecoxib) is linked to
an increased risk of blood clots, heart attacks and strokes. Celebrex is one of
the newer anti arthritic drugs called COX-2 inhibitors that were launched in the
1990s, and is marketed by Pharmacia Corporation and Pfizer Inc. The drug is
prescribed for osteoarthritis, adult rheumatoid arthritis, and menstrual cramps.
The FDA is currently taking independent advice on whether these COX-2
inhibitors, and Celebrex in particular, are safe to remain on sale. Current
studies "strongly suggest" the COX-2 inhibitors increase the risk of
cardiovascular problems, says Dr. Ned Braunstein, senior director of Merck
Research Laboratories.
A related study from the Cleveland Clinic,
published in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggested that the
risk of cardiovascular problems (including but not limited to heart attacks,
chest pains, stroke, death and blood clots), was over twice as high in the
rofecoxib sample than in the control group - a significant find given that the
analysis was based on more than 8,000 patients.
In yet another study of over
42,000 participants, 0.52% of patients taking a placebo pill had a heart attack
each year compared to 0.74% for patients taking rofecoxib and 0.80% for those
taking celecoxib. It's big business too - the drug will do over $6 billion this
year alone.
If you want to know whether you can file a claim against the
makers of Celebrex, you need to ask yourself 3 questions. Firstly, did you take
Celebrex? Most good lawyers (a full list can be found on www.lawyersbench.com)
will also accept cases where you have been taking other COX-2 inhibitors,
(e.g.Vioxx or Bextra). You need to be able to show when you started and stopped
taking Celebrex, and the dosage you were prescribed.
The second question
is did you take Celebrex regularly? Regular Celebrex use is said to be linked to
a much higher risk of stroke, heart attack, and other serious injuries because
you will have simply had more of the drug in your system.
The third
question is did you suffer an injury while taking Celebrex or after taking it?
If you suffered a heart attack, stroke, or other heart problem (requiring
hospitalization or surgery), you may have an excellent chance of filing a
successful claim. You need to be able to say what kind of injury you suffered (a
stroke, heart attack, blood clots etc.), when the injury happened, and if you
were on Celebrex at the time of the injury.
If you can answer all 3
questions successfully, you need a lawyer now.
About the Author
Jeff writes articles on
issues of concern to the general public, and contributes to www.lawyersbench.com the free site
for legal advice and tips.
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