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November 20, 2008 Author's |
Book DisplayGenetic Breakdown
The Truth about Vioxx, Bextra, and Celebrex
 by Stacey Price Brown | Availability |
Description | |
We all get sick from time to time and have to go to the doctor. The doctor prescribes medication, we go home and take the medication with trust in their judgment that first we were diagnosed properly and secondly that the medication will work without causing serious bodily harm or even death. In 1999 a pharmaceutical company took on a common problem that affects one in three Americans; arthritis. There are over one hundred different types of arthritis but nevertheless it can be a very painful, debilitating disease and in some cases it can case death. Many were treating the problem with aspirin but they could not tolerate it because it caused gastrointestinal bleeding. After clinical trials the pharmaceutical company discovered that this new drug not only caused sudden cardiac arrest but it also caused a host of other medical problems. The manufacturer decided to market the drug anyway and thousands of Americans died or were injured but sadly enough many don’t know why. This book answers that question and many more. Many people suffer from arthritis which causes an inflammatory response and pain in the joints. There are three common types of arthritis; rheumatoid, osteoarthritis and infectious arthritis although there are over one hundred different known categories. There is no cure for arthritis. This disease attacks the joints and causes pain and stiffness. The difference between Osteo and Rheumatoid is that the latter will not only destroy the joints but it will also affect the vocal cords causing hoarseness. When the disease is finished running its course by systemically destroying the joints and surrounding muscle, it will destroy organs and tissue as well. Osteoarthritis is limited to joint destruction. It will break down cartilage primarily affecting the hands feet and spine. Most people suffering with infectious arthritis already have an existing joint problem that has exacerbated into infectious arthritis. You’ve heard the expression, no pain, no gain. You don’t have to have arthritis to reach for an aspirin. Just the pain from working out in the gym or a hard day at the job may require an aspirin. Usually it begins with minor joint pain that is treated with aspirin. When we have a minor ache or pain we take an aspirin. When we have a headache we take an aspirin. You can go anywhere in the world and this is one pharmaceutical that has gained worldwide recognition and deservedly so. The chemical name for Aspirin is acetylsalicylic acid and has been used for years as an analgesic which means it will relieve minor aches and pains. It will also reduce fever and inflammation. Aspirin has been the wonder drug and the answer to pain, fever and inflammation for years. As we already know, the human body is very complex. After we ingest anything it goes directly to the stomach which is considered a hollow organ. This organ contains gastric juices or enzymes which are prepared to digest and break down food, liquids or medicine so that the human body can receive a benefit. There are digestive enzymes present that break down whatever is in that stomach environment and changes it from large molecules into smaller ones so that they can move on into the smaller intestine. Once there, they can be absorbed by the human body. In order for this to be achieved, the stomach environment contains up to three liters of gastric juices. Gastric juice is a hormone that comes from gastrin. After it is broken down the molecules are called peptides or chemical bonds and then it is released directly into the bloodstream. Think of the body as a computer. It will detect that there are peptides in the stomach. However if the body detects that there are too many peptides then the human computer will continue to send gastric juice and will not turn off until it feels that everything has been broken down. The result is gastrointestinal bleeding. Aspirin is in the class of nonsteroidal drugs. The name Aspirin was first used by the German company Bayer and they held the first trademark in 1899. However the right to use that trademark was purchased by the U.S. Government and Sterling Drug Company (which became Eastman Kodak and is now Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceutical) even before the patent expired along with all the patent rights and trademarks in 1917. Today, in many countries, the product is just known by its pharmaceutical name, Aspirin, and can be found on the shelves. In some countries Aspirin is still a trademark and can be found under its pharmaceutical name acetylsalicylic acid or ASA. In German language countries it will be shelved as ASS which stands for Acetylsalicysaure, Spanish or Portuguese language countries it will be AAS or Acido Acetilsalicilico and in French speaking countries it will be shelved as Acide Acetylsalicylique or AS. In 1971 John Robert Vane won the Nobel Peace Prize for discovering how aspirin works in the human body. He was employed by the Royal College of Surgeons of London and it wasn’t until 1971 that it was understood that Prostaglandins and thromboxanes are the keys to how aspirin controls inflammation and fever and reduces clots in the circulatory system in the human body. He discovered that cyclooxygenase or COX is an enzyme in the human body which participates in the production of prostaglandins and thromboxanes. Scientists felt that if they could selectively block the chemical messengers in the body that causes inflammation, what a marvelous discovery that would be! It was revealed during discovery and at trial that when Vioxx hit the market in 1999 the company conducted clinical trials. They used Vioxx at 25 milligram doses and dummy tablets. The study was conducted over a three year period and the purpose of the study was to prevent polyps of colon and rectum. The clinical trials were stopped after the drug company discovered that those not taking the dummy pills experienced a 50 percent incidence of heart attack and sudden cardiac death compared to the other group. Even after this group study they went on to spend $160.8 million in a television marketing campaign, featuring figure skater, Dorothy Hamill, to advertise the drug without telling her that by ingesting the drug there will be risk of heart attack four times greater on Vioxx. When a health advocacy group in Washington, D.C. found out the truth about Vioxx in 2000, Sid Wolfe a physician and director of the Health Research Group of the advocacy group Public Citizen of Washington, D.C. said, “Dorothy Hamill doesn’t tell people they have four times the risk of heart attack on Vioxx.” I was one of the first patients to take it. Why do most of us take medication? Because we trust our doctors and we trust their judgment. The doctors take a Hippocratic Oath and the Pharmacist takes a Pharmaceutical oath but who is watching the Pharmaceutical companies? I am not diminishing their contributions to our society but just like professional lobbyists they wine and dine our doctors into using their samples and new products hot off the shelves. Without question they are prescribed to people like me who are suffering and as I indicated I would have taken anything to have relieved my symptoms. However was it informed consent? I was opting for relief from inflammation. I go to church to relieve myself from the pressures of the world and to praise God and he did not have the right to make that decision for me. According to the July 1, 1999 United States Population Census the population was 273,000 million people and 1.9 percent represents approximately 2.6 million people. When the drug company finished running their trials in 1999 and completed their results, they knew that, give or take, these are the number of people that would potentially be sick, injured or killed as a result of taking the drug if it were released on the market. Out of that number these were the potential litigants and the drug company felt it was safe to proceed to market anyway. Clinical data at trial revealed that the drug company conducted a three year study using 25 milligram doses of Vioxx. When Vioxx, Bextra and Celebrex hit the market the Pharmaceutical Company knew that statistically only 0.1% to 1.9% treat as a result of taking the drug if it were released on the market. Again that’s approximately 2.6 million people representing 1.9 percent in a class possibly affected. Out of that number treated with Vioxx, Bextra or Celebrex would potentially suffer any of the following side effects: Body as a whole: abdominal distension, abdominal tenderness, abscess, chest pain, chills, contusion, cyst, diaphragmatic hernia, fever, fluid retention, flushing, fungal infection, infection pain, laceration, pelvic pain, peripheral edema, postoperative pain, syncope, trauma, upper extremity edema, viral syndrome, Hematuria . Cardiovascular System: angina pectoris, atrial fibrillation, bradycardia, irregular heartbeat, palpitation, hematoma, premature ventricular contraction, tachycardia, venous insufficiency. Digestive System: acid reflux, aphthous stomatitis, dental caries. Dental pain, digestive gas symptoms, dry mouth , duodenal disorder (intestinal), dysgeusia, Esophagitis, flatulence, gastric disorder, gastritis, gastroenteritis and infectious gastroenteritis, hematochezia, hemorrhoids, oral infection, oral ulcer, oral lesion, vomiting. Eyes, Ears, Nose and Throat: allergic rhinitis, blurred vision, cerumen impaction, conjunctivitis, dry throat, epitasis, laryngitis, nasal congestion and secretion, ophthalmic injection, optic pain, otitis, otitis media, pharyngitis, tinnitus, tonsillitis Immune System: allergy, hypersensitivity, insect bite reaction, Leukopenia, anemia, Lymphoma, Steven Johnson’s Syndrome. Metabolism and Nutrition: appetite change. Laws were implemented not only to assure that we maintain structure as a society but they were implemented to keep us alive. God gave us laws of social order which can be found throughout the Bible. God made our bodies and as such there are laws to maintain function and we don’t reflect until there is a crisis. When man interferes with the rules of the genetic code by introducing a pharmaceutical which breaks the rules it will wreak havoc in the human body. Scientists and major drug companies understand these rules. These are the rules of DNA and RNA. There are biological rules and if they are interrupted by outside forces causing damage to the DNA the result will be a mutation in the DNA. Today we have a public health crisis. The cost of healthcare is skyrocketing, doctors can’t afford malpractice insurance, those who can afford health insurance can’t afford co-pays, the rest, which numbers in the millions, don’t have coverage and they use the emergency rooms as their private physicians. Patients rely on the health professional to accurately prescribe medicine. We take medicine to relieve symptoms however in 2004 tragedy struck and thousands lost their lives or were seriously injured after taking what was believed to be a miracle arthritis medication. A major pharmaceutical company “discovered” a drug which was designed to selectively inhibit the inflammatory response in the body without the side effects of gastrointestinal bleeding. Scientists felt that if they could selectively block the chemical messengers in the body that causes inflammation, what a marvelous discovery that would be! However record heart, kidney failure, stroke and other bodily injury directly caused by ingesting the drug quickly proved the manufacturer wrong. Everyone makes mistakes but what boggles the mind is the fact that the drug was not pulled from the shelves until 2004 when they knew these facts in 1999. Further, the manufacturer had foresight in drug testing during clinical trials that there would be a fifty percent incidence of sudden cardiac death should someone ingest the pills. Yet in spite of this data they hired celebrity, figure skater Dorothy Hamill and spent $160.8 million dollars in television marketing. The manufacturer, as one of the enumerated terms of settlement, refused to admit liability or causation. This book reveals the whole truth, step by step. It is a personal journey. God allowed me to survive so that I could tell you the truth about Vioxx. After so many lives were lost I will see to it that they did not die in vain. | |
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