The FDA approved Bextra on November 16, 2001 for joint pain of osteoarthritis and adult rheumatoid arthritis, and painful menstrual cramps. It was created by Pfizer, Inc. as a supposedly replacement for Pfizer's other pain relieving drug, Celebrex. The use of Bextra has grown, and culminated with Bextra becoming the number 51 ranked prescribed medication with sales of just over $900 million in 2003, and forecasted sales of $1.5 billion in 2005.
