Lap-Band Wider Use Approved

WASHINGTON—Allergan Inc.'s stomach-shrinking Lap-Band product won approval for broader use, signaling greater use of surgery for obesity while drugs for the condition run into trouble with regulators.

The Food and Drug Administration's decision means Allergan can market the Lap-Band to less severely overweight patients. The move, disclosed by the company Wednesday, follows a favorable review in December by an FDA panel of outside experts.

The Lap-Band is designed to be inserted surgically through a tiny incision and placed at the top portion ...

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