Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion #1 AS Web Support Group arcoxia

hello everyone,
i was put on arcoxia 4 days ago and all my pains have vanished.
any experience with the drug anybody.
thanks.
mike

Hi.
Sorry I haven't had any experience with this drug. Never heard of it to be honest but I am glad it is helping you.
Please keep us updated. I hope the results last.

Don't know where you are based, but the FDA did not approve Arcoxia:
Note: Arcoxia has not been approved by the FDA for the U.S. market. The manufacturer of Arcoxia received a non-approvalable letter from the FDA in April of 2007. This non-approvable letter was due to safety concerns of an increased risk of cardiovascular events (including heart attack and stroke) and questions on the benefit-risk ratio in patients taking Arcoxia. Merck will continue to market Arcoxia outside the United States.

You can google up more information on Arcoxia and the side effects. Interestingly, in the East, (Bahrain area) the dire knowledge of the side effects are banned from public knowledge Very strange. The drug is also banned.

There is Celebrex, another COX-2 inhibitor, medication. Works well, but again, there are the side effects. I was on Celebrex for a long'ish time until it ended up by exacerbating my GERD probs, most horribly I might add. I now basically, only take LDN - low dose naltrexone (which deals with the inflammation).

ARCOXIA: Home Page
Please consult the link to the Prescribing Information for contraindications,
warnings, precautions, and side effects. *ARCOXIA 120 mg should be used only
for ...
www.arcoxia.ae/secure/ - Cached - SimilarArcoxia (Etoricoxib)

Drug / Medicine Information
This page contains answers to some common questions about Arcoxia. It does
not contain all the information that is known about Arcoxia. It does not take the ...
www.news-medical.net/drugs/Arcoxia.aspx - Cached - Similar

ARCOXIA
This leaflet answers some common questions about ARCOXIA. It does not ...
ARCOXIA against the benefits they expect it will have for you. If you have any ...
www.medsafe.govt.nz/consumers/cmi/a/Arcoxia.pdf - Cached - Similar

Doctors: Arthritis drug Arcoxia risky too - USATODAY.com
9 Apr 2007 ... An arthritis drug billed as Merck's replacement to its discredited Vioxx may be just
as risky to the heart, a growing number of doctors say.
www.usatoday.com/.../2007-04-09-arthritis-arcoxia_N.htm - Cached - Similar

(Weird - the above link has been removed...!!)

Its an anti-inflammatory drug, and most people here will either have tried one or more or still be on some kind of anti-inflammatory drug. The fact that it has made a difference confirms to some extent that you have an inflammatory condition. What previous posters have highlighted is that this particular class of anti-inflammatory drugs does have some more severe potential side effects.

There are definitely quite different interpretations of risk in different countries with all of the Cox-2 inhibitors and you will find different prescribing practices in each of them. Fact is, for some people they really work well.

Can you have a really strong discussion with your doctor about why they prescribed this drug and not any of the other NSAIDs first(non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) that don't carry as high a risk? If the reason is that you have tried a number of others and they don't work, then your questions should be to find out what the actual risk is of this drug.

Excellent cemc. I always admire your quiet and sane approach to topics. Very good advice - with you all the way and your culmination: "...then your questions should be to find out what the actual risk is of this drug" is spot on.

Take care all -

Hey guys,
I'm on Arcoxia for the forseeable future. I switched to it after the diclofenac started messing with my stomach big time. I don't have any gut issues now.

Unfortunately it's not funded so I have to pay for it myself, it's about $80 per month (NZD). It seems a rather acceptable drug in NZ, and my rheumy has explained to me why I should be on it. I therefore try not to find it alarming that other countries have completely banned it!

Cheers,
Emily

Hi Emily - reason FDA banned is due to cardiovascular side effects:
Generic Name: etoricoxib

Note: Arcoxia has not been approved by the FDA for the U.S. market. The manufacturer of Arcoxia received a non-approvalable letter from the FDA in April of 2007. This non-approvable letter was due to safety concerns of an increased risk of cardiovascular events (including heart attack and stroke) and questions on the benefit-risk ratio in patients taking Arcoxia. Merck will continue to market Arcoxia outside the United States.

Is marketed over here in France, was withdrawn (I think!) from UK. Did try it once, but have horrible spiking hypertension, MIs, CVAs, so a definite no-no for me!

Could possibly find that it interferes with gasto, and could end up with GERD/Reflux. Was on Celebrex (Cox-2 inhibitor) for 'n number of years. Ended up with a right nasty GERD/Reflux - from which I still suffer, unless am extremely careful not to eat any flour based products.

Can cause stomach ulcers : http://www.drugs.com/arcoxia.html

Do take a stomach protector as a precaution - yogurt is quite good for that. Plain yog, no artificial sweeteners, nor buffers such as starches. Good 'organic' yog. Sheep is good as well as goat's milk yog. Better than cows yog, as the lactose is more digestible.

Hope this helps.

Go well -

Yes, its used in the UK too. I've not heard of it being used as a first choice NSAID, but if you have tried other NSAIDs unsuccessfully, and don't have any of the big risk factors for heart disease, then I would have thought worth a try. Hope you have good luck with it. $80 a month for it is a bit of a nuisance, but I guess a lot of folk in NZ end up paying that kind of money in part charges for prescriptions - I know my mum certainly pays a lot more a month in total for all her meds. Makes me feel really incredibly lucky living in Scotland with free prescriptions.