Nation IN BRIEF : WASHINGTON, D.C. : FDA Approves Drug to Combat Obesity
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From Times Staff and Wire Reports
The Food and Drug Administration approved the first new anti-obesity drug in 22 years. The drug, dexfenfluramine, fools patients into feeling full so they lose weight. It won approval over the objections of consumer advocates and some doctors, who fear it could cause brain damage or a rare but dangerous lung disorder. But the FDA said the brain damage so far has been found only in animals, and the lung ailment is rare. Dexfenfluramine will cost about $2 per day.
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