Merck Goes up 5-4 in Vioxx Litigation

By: United Press International

Merck & Co. Inc. has notched another win, this time in New Orleans, against the U.S. plaintiffs' bar in the ongoing war over Vioxx liabilities.

A U.S. District Court jury Tuesday took about three hours to reject a Kentucky man's claim that his 2003 heart attack was caused by the blockbuster painkiller, which the New Jersey pharmaceutical pulled from the market two years ago.

Robert Garry Smith took Vioxx for approximately four months before his heart attack.

"The jury's decision confirms that Merck acted responsibly and that Vioxx was not the cause of Mr. Smith's heart attack," said Philip Beck, Merck's lead trial lawyer in the case.

"Mr. Smith had multiple risk factors for a heart attack including elevated blood pressure, a family history of cardiac problems, coronary artery disease and he was considered medically obese," Beck said. "Finally, Mr. Smith's strenuous physical activity on the day of his heart attack -- shoveling snow, in cold temperatures, for almost an hour -- is a well-known trigger for such events. Unfortunately, Mr. Smith would have suffered a heart attack whether he was taking Vioxx or not."

Merck has won two out of three federal Vioxx trials but thousands of similar cases remain to be heard.