Celebrex Class Action Lawsuit
Attention, Celebrex patients. Celebrex lawyers are waiting to evaluate your situation. If you have suffered similar personal injuries as a group of others in your area that could be linked with your regular use of Celebrex, you could potentially be part of a class action lawsuit, and we have Lead Counsel qualified attorneys available to help.
Celebrex, similar to Vioxx, was approved by FDA in May 1999 for the relief of the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and for the management of acute pain in adults. Similar to Vioxx, Pfizer (the manufacturer of Celebrex) has enjoyed multi-million dollar sales due to their television and print advertising for the drug Celebrex. As a result, serious concerns have been raised in recent months regarding the use of Celebrex, as well as the Celebrex side effects on cardiovascular health and the increased risk of heart attack and stroke.
The heart attack findings for Celebrex come only 10 weeks following Merck & Co.'s recall of Vioxx, after a study found the drug doubled the incidence of heart attack and stroke among patients taking it to prevent colon polyps that cause cancer. Earlier this month, the Food and Drug Administration said it was adding a warning to the labels of another Pfizer drug, Bextra, warning of potential heart problems associated with the use of that drug in people who have recently had heart bypass surgery, which raised serious questions and concerns relating to the safety all the COX-2 inhibitors (Vioxx, Bextra and Celebrex).
According to Dr. Garret FitzGerald, a cardiologist and pharmacologist at the University of Pennsylvania and his team of researchers, the COX-2 inhibitor painkillers suspected of causing fatal heart disease may act by starting the process of hardening the arteries.
Tests on mice indicate COX-2 inhibitors might be especially dangerous to younger women, who are normally protected by biology from heart disease. Dr. FitzGerald's team found that a fatty acid called PGI2 made by the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) enzyme protects female mice from hardening of the arteries by limiting activation of blood platelets that can cause clots and may damage artery walls. PGI2 also reduces oxidative stress that damages the insides of arteries. Shutting down COX-2 long term may actually kick-start the process, known as atherosclerosis, FitzGerald said in a telephone interview.
FitzGerald's study also indicated that estrogen triggers COX-2 activity that produces the PGI2 fatty acid, which leads to protection from atherosclerosis. This is why younger women are less likely to have heart attacks than women past menopause.
Are you a regular user of Celebrex? Have you suffered a personal injury that may be linked with the dangerous Celebrex side effects? You may have a claim, and any delays on your part could adversely affect your claim. Contact a Celebrex lawyer today!