Drug Company Nemesis Strikes Again

The doctor who helped to raise concerns about the painkiller Vioxx is back—with the study released earlier this week linking the same company's popular diabetes drug, Avandia, to higher risk of heart attacks. The Wall Street Journal looks at 58-year-old cardiologist Steven Nissen's role in identifying and publicizing drug risks.

Nissen's study is a meta-analysis of data from earlier studies on Avandia he found with a Google search. The results of other studies had been posted by the company, GlaxoSmithKline, itself, after earlier accusations that it withheld negative information. The FDA is not taking action on the drug until it completes its own analysis.