Jury Chosen In First Federal Vioxx Trial

HOUSTON -- The first federal trial over the painkiller Vioxx is under way.
A jury was chosen Tuesday in Houston in a trial that will determine whether the drug caused the death of a 53-year-old man.
The case centers on the May 2001 death of Richard "Dicky" Irvin Jr., a Florida man who had a fatal heart attack a month after he started taking Vioxx to alleviate back pain. His wife, Evelyn Irvin Plunkett, claims in her lawsuit that her husband was in "very good health" when he started taking the once-popular painkiller, reported KPRC-TV in Houston.
Merck, the maker of the drug, maintains that Vioxx didn't cause Irvin's death because he was taking it for such a short time.
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Merck, based in Whitehouse Station, N.J., pulled Vioxx from the market in September 2004 after a study showed it could double the risk of heart attack or stroke if taken for 18 months or longer. The drug, prescribed to relieve acute pain and arthritis while cutting the risk of stomach bleeding, went on the market in 1999 and reached peak sales of $2.5 billion a year.
In the first two Vioxx cases to go to trial on the state level, the company lost one case in Texas, but successfully defended itself in a New Jersey trial.
This trial, which is expected to last two weeks, is being heard in Houston instead of in its original venue of New Orleans because of the damage from Hurricane Katrina.
Four women and five men were chosen for the jury. Three are alternates.
Merck faces about 7,000 state and federal lawsuits and billions of dollars in potential payouts for judgments, settlements and legal fees.
Merck has vowed to fight most of litigation, though the company has said it will consider settling lawsuits that involve long-term Vioxx usage.