A look at the Vioxx trial unfolding in Madison County

A look at the Midwest's first trial over Merck & Co.'s once-blockbuster painkiller Vioxx. The Madison County trial is expected to take four to six weeks.

THE PLAINTIFF: Frank Schwaller, who blames the 2003 heart-attack death of his 52-year-old wife, Patricia Schwaller, on her roughly 20-month use of Vioxx. The Granite City woman had no previous history of heart attacks, strokes or symptoms of congestive heart disease, the family's attorneys say. Frank Schwaller also accuses Merck of failing to adequately warn of Vioxx's potential risks before pulling the drug off the market in 2004.

THE DEFENDANT: New Jersey-based Merck says it properly warned doctors of possible complications from using Vioxx and that Schwaller's pre-existing health issues _ obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure _ may better explain why she suffered a fatal heart attack.

THE VENUE: Edwardsville in Madison County, labeled by detractors in recent years as a "judicial hellhole" where lawyers from across the country have filed cases hoping for big payouts involving everything from asbestos exposure to medical malpractice.