Allergan Inc. (AGN) won’t seek U.S. clearance to sell its popular Lap-Band stomach shrinking device to an increasing population of obese teenagers. In the wake of congressional criticism and lawsuits, the Irvine, California-based company has decided to shelve any plans for marketing its Lap-Band device to adolescents, among the fastest-growing group of obese Americans. Health advocacy groups have warned about the surgery’s safety and its effect on a young person’s developing body. And a 2011 Archives of Surgery study found that almost half of adult patients who had gastric banding had the device removed following infections and other complications.
