Sorry your question got missed for so long! And sorry too that your mom has fibro.

I scoured a number of sites, and saw that Vioxx was not recommended for persons with pre-existing kidney or liver disease. The risk for developing kidney or liver disease from taking Vioxx was lumped in with the same risk from taking other NSAIDS ... including aspirin and ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil). There is similar risk of gastric upset and bleeding, but much less than aspirin. I also noted that increased blood pressure and edema/swelling of the legs can occur. This is due to the drug causing fluid and salt retention, so it would be wise to cut the salt intake. RxList has a good drug information database. Here's the link to the chart of adverse reactions for rofecoxib/Vioxx.

One risk that wasn't really mentioned in the side effects is that apparently there's a risk for heart problems .. here's an article at MSNBC about it, from August 2001.

As for low-carbing ... ketosis does not damage the kidneys or liver. Ketones are a normal thing for the liver to produce .. most people including non-lowcarbers will produce at least a few ketones during the overnight "fast". It is no more "stressful" for the liver to convert fatty acids to ketones, than for it to convert glucose to glycogen for storage. The liver is one big factory, and converting and storing the by-products of digestion and metabolism is its role.

Ketones and ketogenic diets do not harm kidneys. Persons with existing kidney disease may have to avoid excessive PROTEIN, but low-carbing itself, and consuming the needed calories as fat will not harm the kidneys in any way. Ketogenic diets are being used successfully to treat epilepsy in small children, and infants even (over 1 yr) .. and they remain on these low-carb, moderate protein, high-fat diets for years ... (er well, until they go to school and swap candy with their friends )

There are a growing number of practitioners who are recommending low-carb or at least carb-restricted diet, such as The Zone ... for fibromyalgia treatment. I have found that I no longer have the late afternoon energy slumps. I do recommend eating smaller meals more frequently. And make sure each meal or snack has at least a little protein with it, and not just low in carbs.

Hope this is helpful (if tardy )

Doreen