Health Highlights: Aug. 17, 2006

Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Merck Has 2 Legal Setbacks Over Vioxx

A U.S. federal court jury in New Orleans on Thursday ordered drug maker Merck to pay $51 million to a former FBI agent who said his 2002 heart attack was caused by the painkiller Vioxx.

Merck had argued that 62-year-old Gerald Barnett''s history of heart disease was to blame for his heart attack, Bloomberg news reported.

In a second legal setback for the company, a state judge in New Jersey overturned a November trial decision that favored Merck, the Associated Press reported. State Superior Court Judge Carol Higbee ruled that new evidence showed Merck withheld information linking Vioxx use of more than 18 months with a greater risk of heart attack, the wire service said.

The New Orleans verdict was Merck''s fourth loss in nine Vioxx trials, Bloomberg said. The company withdrew the drug from the market in 2004 after studies concluded that the painkiller increased the risk of heart attack and stroke in some patients.

Merck faces more than 16,000 Vioxx lawsuits and says it plans to fight each one in court. It''s budgeted about $1 billion for legal costs to defend itself but has not put aside any money for liability, Bloomberg reported.

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Some Online Games Promote Sociability: Study

They''re often criticized for isolating people from one another or being a waste of time, but some popular online video games actually "promote sociability and new worldviews," according to an American study.

Researchers at the University of Illinois-Champaign and the University of Wisconsin-Madison studied the form and function of massively multiplayer online games (MMOs). They concluded that the games don''t isolate people, but act as virtual coffee shops or pubs where "social bridging" occurs, United Press International reported.

Examples of positive kinds of MMOs include "Asheron''s Call" and "Lineage."

"By providing places for social interaction and relationships beyond the workplace and homes, MMOs have the capacity to function much like the hangouts of old," the study authors wrote. In fact, the lack of real world hangouts is what''s behind the popularity of MMOs, they added.

Their findings are published in the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication.

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Target Recalls Firestreet Scooters

Target is recalling about 185,000 F Forward Firestreet Scooters with parts that can break while in use, which could cause falls and injuries. The scooters'' handlebars, wheels and wheel brakes can break and detach. Target has received five reports of incidents and injuries from falls, including a broken arm, cracked teeth, bruises to the head, face and arm, a lacerated toe, and scratches, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said.