Long History of Heart Arrhythmia and Darvocet

Popular painkillers containing propoxyphene, which include Darvocet, Darvon and generic equivalents, were removed from the market in November 2010 after it was confirmed that the risk of serious and potentially life-threatening heart side effects of Darvocet and other propoxyphene drugs outweigh the benefits provided by the medications. Propoxyphene is the active pharmaceutical ingredient in Darvon, Darvocet and dozens of generic versions of those drugs, including variations such as Darvocet N100, Darvocet N50, Davon-N and Compound 65. The medications have been used to relieve pain from fractures, major surgery, dental surgery and pain related to arthritis, joint pain and headaches. Research has confirmed that Darvon and Darvocet affect the heart by acting as a local anesthetic, potentially causing irregular heartbeats. As a result of these Darvocet and Darvon heart problems, individuals could suffer: Darvocet heart arrhythmia, cardiac arrest and myocardial infarction.

Although literature suggests that the effects of propoxyphene on the heart will go away when the medication is stopped, many former Darvon and Darvocet users have suffered serious and permanent injuries as a result of side effects they experienced while taking the painkiller; tragic as Darvocet overdose and death. Some have suffered life-altering events because their heart suddenly stopped, while others have required painful treatment for Darvon or Darvocet heart arrhythmias or other side effects of the mediations. In some cases, individuals were even implanted with pacemakers or other devices as a result of heart rhythm problems from Darvocet and Darvon.

Darvon and Darvocet side effects were linked to over 2,110 deaths between 1981 and 1999, accounting for 5.6% of all drug deaths during the time. An FDA advisory panel recommended in February 2009 that the pain medications be withdrawn due to the potential risk of Darvocet death and other serious injuries.  Although the FDA usually follows the recommendations of their advisory panels, the agency allowed the medication to remain on the market, instead deciding to require a new “black box” warning about the risk of overdose with Darvocet and Darvon. More than 22 million people have used Darvocet, which was one of the 25 most commonly prescribed medications in the United States.  As result of the manufacturers failure to properly warn about the risk of serious and potentially fatal problems from Darvocet and Darvon, thousands of people may have suffered an injury.