Bextra Pulled From Pharmacy Shelves
April 7, 2005Â – Bextra is one of the controversial Cox-2 inhibitors. It had already been linked to an increase risk for cardiovascular problems and may now be linked to an increased risk for Stevens Johnson Syndrome.
Stevens Johnson Syndrome is a rare and potentially fatal skin disease that can result from a drug reaction.
Pfizer says they “respectfully disagree” with the F.D.A, but have pulled the drug. Pfizer will be conducting further studies to prove the benefits of the drug outweigh the risks.
This leaves Celebrex as the only Cox-2 inhibitor currently on the market. And Celebrex will carry a black box warning, the F.D.A.’s strongest warning, about its risks.
In addition to this, the F.D.A. asks that all non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, like ibuprofen, change their label to include information about cardiovascular and gastrointestinal bleeding risks.
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