Is Lipodissolve Safe

Lipodissolve or mesotherapy isn’t a cheap procedure. It can cost up to $2,000 per body part. No one knows the long-term health effects of lipodissolve. So, everyone who is receiving this trendy treatment is literally a guinea pig. If you are a guinea pig for a medical experiment, you should get paid for it, not the other way around.

The following is quoted from The Wall Street Journal “Popular Treatment That Aims To Melt Fat Draws Scrutiny” by RHONDA L. RUNDLE, 06/12/2007

The rise of cosmetic fat-busting injections, called lipodissolve, is spurring warnings from doctors who are alarmed about the spread of the pricey procedures, which use concoctions that aren’t approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

Lipodissolve, sometimes called medical lipolysis, is touted as a nonsurgical alternative to liposuction. It involves a series of tiny shots meant to melt fat deposits in various parts of the body, including bellies and buttocks.

The treatment, which originated in Europe decades ago, has been taking off in the U.S. on the wings of local ad campaigns. A number of medical spas — which offer aesthetic treatments like Botox — have begun doing lipodissolve. And specialty centers are popping up, such as a chain called fig., which operates 11 clinics in the U.S. and plans to open more this year. Fig. declined to answer questions about its business.

But as the popularity of the injections has grown, so have complaints. Last month, the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery warned that the shots are "scientifically unproven, lacking any objective data on safety and efficacy." The surgeons’ group, which is sponsoring human tests to evaluate one such treatment, urged the public "to steer clear" until more data come in.

One fact isn’t in dispute. There are no fat-busting injectables approved by the FDA. Practitioners use different recipes that are prepared by a compounding pharmacy or in a physician’s office. Such custom mixes, using ingredients approved for other uses, fall into a regulatory gray area. One combination used by many practitioners is phosphatidylcholine and sodium deoxycholate, or PCDC for short. Phosphatidylcholine is a soybean-derived ingredient in food supplements; sodium deoxycholate is an emulsifier typically derived from cattle bile. Lipodissolve is often described as a form of mesotherapy, which may use different ingredients, including herbs, in its shots.