Diet Pill Redux

Two years ago, you could hardly pick up a newspaper or a magazine (including this one) without catching the buzz about a pill called Redux that was going to revolutionize the way Americans lose weight. Then last summer doctors noticed an alarming number of heart-valve problems in their patients who took Redux or its chemical cousin fenfluramine, prompting the recall of both drugs. Now comes word, from three studies published in last week's New England Journal of Medicine, that the heart problems may not be as serious as was first feared--at least for patients who took the pills for less than...