As Merck reels from 11,500 suits over Vioxx, its arthritis drug, the rest of the industry is girding for challenges over another half a dozen widely used medications that plaintiffs' lawyers say have hidden and severe side effects or were improperly marketed.
Unlike Vioxx, which Merck stopped selling in 2004, the other drugs remain on the market.
The drugs now under attack include Seroquel, an antipsychotic medicine from AstraZeneca; Ortho-Evra, a birth-control patch from Johnson & Johnson; Prempro, a hormone therapy for women from Wyeth; and Fosamax, an osteoporosis medicine made by Merck. The drugs have combined annual sales of almost $7 billion and are used by millions of patients.
Full Article by ALEX BERENSON
# posted by madthumbs @ 9:12 AM
