Bextra, also known as valdecoxib, is a prescription medicine known as a COX-2 Inhibitor. Like Vioxx and Celebrex, it supposedly lessen the pain of inflammation and fever without causing stomach irritation common to aspirin and other NSAIDs (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs). Pharmaceutical corporation Pfizer released Bextra in 2001, and prescription sales soon rose to 3.2 billion dollars.

Bextra is used to take care of an assortment of different conditions, including arthritis, menstrual cramps, and other types of chronic inflammation or low level pain. Pfizer discovered in 2002 that Bextra offered an elevated risk of serious skin irritation during the beginning stages of treatment. Also, during a complicated heart procedure called coronary artery bypass graft, certain patients who had also taken Bextra developed serious heart problems. Bextra also created a heightened risk of Steven-Johnsons’s Syndrome, a potentially fatal skin condition resulting in infection and inflammation, and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis, which creates infected skin to flake off and die. In addition, it was originally believed that Bextra, like its sister drug Celebrex, might pose the same heightened risk of stroke and heart attack, and the FDA ordered more examinations to investigate this possibility. Later, in April 2005, the FDA asked Pfizer to remove Bextra from the market because the side effects proved too dangerous for public consumption.

Victims of pharmaceutical shortsightedness have a right to be compensated. A knowledgeable attorney is the key to getting you the settlement you deserve. Just as important as your physical recovery, your financial recovery depends on the action you decide to take. Hesitating one day may prevent you from taking the legal action necessary to recover your losses. Contact a lawyer today!