Analysts Say Vioxx Could Return to Market This Fall

Although Merck has not yet divulged its intentions regarding the future of Vioxx, pharmaceutical analysts expect the drugmaker to reintroduce the controversial arthritis pain treatment sometime this fall, following the favorable recommendation issued recently by an FDA advisory panel.

Members of the FDA's Drug Safety and Risk Management and Arthritis Advisory Committees narrowly agreed that Vioxx's (rofecoxib) risk-benefit profile supports marketing the drug in the U.S., but only with strict warnings and possible restrictions.

A Merck spokeswoman said recently that the firm was still analyzing the panel's recommendations and that any talk of a relaunch at this time "would be speculation." Merck pulled Vioxx, a Cox-2 inhibitor, last fall after it was linked to an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.