Tuesday, October 05, 2004

A Widely Used Arthritis Drug Is Withdrawn COMMENT: YOU REALIZE, OF COURSE, MERCK WAS WARNED FIVE YEARS AGO THAT THERE WERE "PROBLEMS" WITH THIS DRUG! STAY AWAY FROM DRUGS!!!!! The drug company Merck announced yesterday that it would stop selling its arthritis and pain medication Vioxx, currently taken by close to two million people worldwide, because a new study found that it doubled patients' risk of heart attack and strokes. Vioxx has been a blockbuster for Merck, with sales of $2.5 billion last year, and has been widely marketed as a safe alternative to drugs like aspirin, which can cause ulcers and gastrointestinal bleeding. 11:40:07 AM    comment [] LIKE WE'VE ALWAYS SAID: GETTING FLU VACCINE SUREST WAY TO GET THE FLU! U.K. Health Authorities Block Chiron's Flu-Vaccine Shipments  British health authorities blocked flu-vaccine shipments by the company that produces half the vaccine used in the U.S. just ahead of the flu season. Chiron Corp.'s manufacturing license was suspended immediately for three months because of manufacturing problems, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said. The Health Department didn't elaborate on the reason. Chiron, which produces the Fluvirin vaccine, said earlier that factory tests revealed that some batches of vaccine failed sterility testing -- suggesting contamination -- and that all 50 million doses that the company was producing would be held up for additional tests. http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109698691257236533,00.html     11:27:32 AM    comment []

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