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 One
of the nation's largest managed care organizations, Kaiser
Permanente, has made a request to pharmacies to discontinue dispensing
the arthritis and pain drug Bextra. Tests of this drug, manufactured
by Pfizer, have shown that it might increase the risk of heart attacks
and strokes.
Bextra is third in line of recent painkillers linked to cardiac
risks. First, Vioxx was pulled off the shelves last fall after its
own testing revealed cardiac risks followed by Celebrex, which has
also been linked to increased cardiac risks when taken in higher
doses.
In many ways Kaiser is looked upon as a model for other health
care providers. For this reason their decision to stop dispensing
the drug Bextra could further the slump of its sales, which have
already taken a plunge since studies disclosed its cardiac risks.
Kaiser doctors plan on continuing to prescribe Celebrex at low
doses. Their justification was that it didn't seem to have
the same health risks as Bextra or Vioxx.
Driving Factors Behind Discontinuing the
Dispensing of Bextra
The two main reasons why Kaiser no longer wanted to be involved
with dispensing the drug was safety and quality. Clinical trials
have shown that Bextra was no more effective at alleviating pain
than older medicines such as ibuprofen and diclofenac and in rare
cases it has caused a fatal skin rash. Also, its claim that it is
safer on the stomach than older medicine hasn't been founded
in clinical trials.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken action by advising
physicians to limit their prescriptions of Bextra and Celebrex in
light of the studies that linked taking these drugs to an increased
risk of heart attacks and stroke.
New
York Times January 29, 2005
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