A stroke occurs when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted or when a ruptured blood vessel floods the brain with blood. Stroke can cause severe brain damage leading to various complications including death. Approximately 600,000 strokes occur each year with 160,000 victims dying as a result. A drug called a tissue plasminogen activator (TPA) can prevent some of the adverse impacts associated with stroke if administered within the first three hours of the event and only if there is no bleeding in the brain.
Recently, the Cox-2 inhibiting drugs Vioxx, Celebrex, and Bextra have come under fire for causing strokes. Lawyers investigating Vioxx, attorneys filing Celebrex lawsuits, and Bextra law firms urge patients to find an arthritis drug lawyer to handle their stroke claim. Merck has also performed a voluntary Vioxx recall in light of the Vioxx heart attack and stroke concern.