Study to weigh painkillers' safety

The Cleveland Clinic will lead an international study to learn whether painkillers taken by millions of Americans for arthritis are safe for those at risk of heart problems.

The study, with an unusual mix of industry and academic researchers and government oversight, also aims to restore public confidence after the Vioxx debacle.

"There's only one way: through good science," said Dr. Steven Nissen, the Cleveland cardiologist who will lead the study.

Drug safety and the credibility of research have become bigger concerns since Vioxx and Bextra were pulled from the market because of evidence they can raise the risk of a heart attack or stroke. That left Pfizer's Celebrex as the only available Cox-2 inhibitor. Cox-2 inhibitors became blockbusters because they were gentler on the stomach than older pain relievers.

Many people who switched to over-the-counter pain relievers called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) then had a new worry when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ordered stronger warning labels earlier this year.

The new study will test Celebrex and two types of NSAIDs — ibuprofen (sold as Motrin, Advil and other brands) and naproxen (Naprosyn, Aleve).

About 20,000 people in the United States, Eastern Europe, Canada, Australia and South America will be randomly assigned to get one of the three and a drug to prevent stomach irritation so each pain reliever's true effectiveness can be assessed. Drugs and follow-up medical monitoring will be free. To be eligible, participants must have had a heart problem, such as a heart attack, blocked arteries or chronic chest pain, or diabetes, stroke or clogged vessels in the neck or legs.

"The idea here is if you know what happens in the highest-risk individuals, you will know how to use the drugs in people at lower risk," Nissen said. "We will have 10 times the statistical power of any trial ever done of these drugs."

Pfizer will pay for the study, which is expected to cost more than $100 million, but independent researchers will collect the results and have offered to make all of them public, not just bottom-line conclusions.