Posted on 12/29/2004 12:38:09 PM PST by neverdem
Or just live with the pain!
My dad had to take a similar course of action.
He has had arthritis since he was my age (34).
Now he is in pain most of the time and doesn't know what he should take.
Your heart will explode, but you won't feel pain....
He should take vioxx (if he has any left), celebrex, or alleve at the lower-scale of the recommended doses.
Perhaps cycle them . .. 10 days one, 10 days the next.
IN ALL PROBABILITY, this is JUNK SCIENCE. The test are for SOME people at HIGH doses.
In sum, because .01% of the people have problems 99.99% will be in pain so the drug companies can (senisbly, from their persepctive) avoid lawsuits.
This patient thinks that the FDA/Pharma complex has become way too cozy.
FDA funding now comes directly from pharmaceutical companies, and they get no further funding from drugs that they do not approve.
When a drug company enrolls a new product for FDA approval, they also hand over $500,000 for oversight expenses, and they keep handing over more and more money until the drug is either approved or terminated.
The FDA is not an independent body. They routinely gag investigators who raise alarms about new products.
That is EXACTLY how the Vioxx episode occurred. The people in the FDA who were against its approval were ordered to shut up.
Abolish the FDA.
Trial lawyers are the scum of the earth, but at least they are independent of the pharmaceutical companies.
Sad to say, drug regulation by lawsuit is a lot more honest and effective than drug regulation by the FDA.
Holy Crap!
Convince your Dad to get back on Celebrex. Seriously. I mean, what's the big deal? An increased risk of heart attack---even though the risk remains low---versus constant pain. I'll tell you what I'd pick at his age.
bttt
Stick to a glass of wine and a couple of Advils.
My dad is 59.
He lost his favorite brother a few years back to a massive heart attack, and heart disease runs in my family.
He hasn't mentioned it but I am sure that's his motivation for quitting both.
My mom has tried to convince him to stay on the Celebrex but he's quite stubborn, just like his son. ;)
It isn't that simple. My father-in-law had been taking Vioxx and Celebrex for a about a year for pain, both at different times. Since his pain threshold was so high (he also took valium for pain at times that did not touch it) he was instructed to take higher doses by his doctors. He was a Marine who was a radio operator in Vietnam and who had endured more medical issues since then than most can imagine. He never complained, just did what the doctors told him to.
He passed away on December 2 from a massive heart attack. As painful as that has been, hearing about the dangers of these drugs after we had just buried this proud Marine hurt worse. Of course, he was doing just what the doctors told him to do. They were advising him based on the manufacturer's recommendations, which said higher doses were safe. Now we know differently.
BTW - The ONLY over the counter medication he ever took for anything pain related was Aleve, since his son, my brother-in-law, worked at Bayer where it was made.
Oh yeah, my father-in-law was 59 years old. He was an athlete in his younger days, though with only one leg he was confined to a wheelchair the last 6 years. Overall, however, he was relatively healthy and his family has no history of heart problems.
Well, hey, we've all gotta make our own choices, I guess. All I know is that both Vioxx and Celebrex have been a godsend to many in severe pain. Seems the risk ought to be worth it for many, maybe even your dad.
All the best!
Hmmm, my doctorate isn't in medicine (heh heh), however: live life in continous pain... or accept a slight risk of increased chance of heart attack?
I know what my choice would be, and it isn't the former. Or become long-term opiate user; studies have shown there is little overall risk with long-term moderate dose opiates, and the people taking it are perfectly functional (i.e., not off in lala-land).
Unfortunately many Americans do not realize (with their instant-gratification minds) that their is virtue in suffering.
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