On Thursday, the FDA panel of scientific advisors issued a report that said the drug PPA should not be classified as safe and may increase the risk of hemorrhagic stroke in people, primarily women, under the age of 50. The drug constricts blood vessels and may seriously raise a person's blood pressure, which could cause a hemorrhage. The FDA is not required to act on the advice of its panel, but in most cases takes the advisors recommendations. Dr. Brass conducted this study during the past nine years. Stroke affects more than three quarters of a million people every year.
Hemorrhagic stroke is the least common but is the most deadly.