LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Vioxx: Taking
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In what continues to be the most comprehensive reporting of the Vioxx trial, The Wall Street Journal has an interesting piece on the novel practice of allowing jurors to ask questions during the trial. Judge Carol Higbee has allowed the jury to ask separate questions of witnesses after both lawyers have completed their direct and cross examinations, and many of the questions have raised concerns among court watches and jury consultants about the effectiveness of the plaintiff's argument.
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The jury in the first Vioxx lawsuit to reach trial returned a verdict in favor of the Plaintiff. Angered at the conduct by Merck officials, jurors included in the verdict a punitive damages award of $229 million.
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Research has shown that the mechanism by which Vioxx operates in the body causes a chemical imbalance that can result in blood clots. These blood clots form in the cardiovascular system, particularly in the coronary arteries or the arteries in the brain.
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Topol, in a column posted last week on The New England Journal of Medicine's Web site, called for a congressional review of the Vioxx "catastrophe." "The senior executives at Merck and the leadership at the FDA share responsibility for not having taken appropriate action and not recognizing that they are accountable for the public health."
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As of March 9, 2005, more than 1,300 lawsuits had been filed against Merck for injuries caused by Vioxx. Of those cases, 127 are now before Judge Fallon and another 400 are likely to be transferred to that court in the near future.
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If you miss a dose of Vioxx, and you are taking 1 dose daily, take the missed dose if you remember the same day. Skip the missed dose if you do not remember until the next day. DO NOT take 2 doses at once.
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