Lawyers for Frederick "Mike" Humeston, the Boise postal worker who blames Vioxx for his 2001 heart attack, sparred Wednesday with the Merck & Co. executive who promoted the arthritis drug.

Charlotte McKines, executive director of integrated marketing for Merck, said in a videotaped testimony that she believed the drug was free of heart-related risks when she co-authored an April 2000 press release declaring Vioxx to have a "favorable cardiovascular profile."

Attorneys for Humeston were expected to rest their case Wednesday afternoon. Merck is to begin its defense this morning. Merck has argued that work-related stress or other health factors unrelated to Vioxx prompted Humeston's heart attack.

The judge in a Boise man's lawsuit against Merck & Co. delivered a blow to the drugmaker Friday when she struck the testimony of its first defense witness from the record.

Superior Court Judge Carol Higbee said she felt misled and sickened upon rereading the transcript of Thursday's testimony by Merck researcher Dr. Briggs Morrison, who said Merck studies in the late 1990s showed Vioxx would not cause heart damage.

Higbee said Morrison was not an expert on the studies he had testified about.

Frederick "Mike" Humeston of Boise is suing Merck because he said the company's painkiller Vioxx caused his 2001 heart attack. Merck has argued Humeston's lifestyle caused the attack.