85 Irish Vioxx complaints just 'tip of the iceberg'

THE 85 complaints to the Irish Medicines Board (IMB) about the controversial painkiller Vioxx are just the tip of the iceberg, a solicitor warned yesterday.

Raymond Bradley of Dublin-based Malcolmson Law, who is preparing cases for Irish families against the drug's makers, said the IMB has received 85 complaints about Vioxx.

But there could be hundreds of other Irish people who may not be aware that the once-popular arthritis drug caused their loved-ones' health problems, he said.

His firm has received hundreds of enquiries on the issue, he said.

Vioxx, made by pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co, was withdrawn from shelves here last September after it was shown it increased the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Last Friday, a jury in Texas awarded a widow €209m after it found the company liable for the death of her husband.

Speaking on RTÉ radio's News at One yesterday, Mr Bradley said dozens of Irish cases have been lined up as part of a class action in the United States against the company. But that number could rise, he said.

"Many people have had cardiac problems who were elderly and who didn't realise that those problems could have been caused by a drug prescribed to them," he said. "Similarly, and more tragically, many people may have died and their families didn't realise they were on the drug or that they could have died as a consequence of the drug."

Mr Bradley said it was unclear how many people in Ireland were on Vioxx.

"But we do know that there were 117,428 prescriptions under the medical card scheme to public patients," he said.

"There is a preponderance of evidence of an unsubstantiated nature that people who took Vioxx seem to have an increased risk of stroke, cardiovascular problems and heart attacks. It is on the balance of probability and on the basis of scientific and clinical trials undertaken."

The first Irish case could be ready within two to three years.

"This litigation will be ongoing for decades," he said.

Merck & Co's Irish subsidiary, Merck Sharp and Dohme, employs more than 400 people in Co Tipperary.

It is facing more than 4,200 lawsuits worldwide from people who say they were damaged by Vioxx.

The company is appealing last Friday's court ruling.