Pfizer Asked to Pull Arthritis Drug Bextra

NPR | By Richard Knox

Published April 8, 2005 at 12:00 AM EDT

The Food and Drug Administration has asked Pfizer to remove the anti-inflammatory drug Bextra from pharmacy shelves. The painkiller is the latest inhibitor of the enzyme known as cox-2 that has been shown to increase risks to heart, stomach and skin. The FDA named 18 other prescription and over-the-counter medicines that may pose a danger.

Richard Knox

Since he joined NPR in 2000, Knox has covered a broad range of issues and events in public health, medicine, and science. His reports can be heard on NPR's Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition, Talk of the Nation, and newscasts.

See stories by Richard Knox

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