The third Vioxx trial is coming up. “Irvin’s health will be a factor. His widow says he was in very good health when he began taking Vioxx, but Merck notes that he received a Vioxx prescription from his son-in-law, an emergency-room physician, without a checkup.
Also, Irvin’s autopsy indicated he had clogged arteries, and a clot in a major coronary artery caused an irregular heartbeat and death. Merck and Plunkett disagree on whether Vioxx was a factor in the clot formation.”
