A therapy that promises to melt fat away with the help of a syringe has not yet been proven a safe and effective alternative to liposuction, according to a new report. The report, by a committee of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), points to a lack of research data and standardized techniques for the treatment, known as mesotherapy. Mesotherapy breaks down pockets of fat that dwell anywhere from the jaw line to the waistline to the hips. It involves a series of injections into the problem area, with the ingredients of those injections varying from case to case. A mixture of various drugs, plant extracts and other substances may be used. One of the most common ingredients is phosphatidylcholine, or lecithin - a waxy substance found in the cells of plants and animals. Lecithin is added to food and other products as an emulsifier, which means it helps mix fats with liquid. The product may act similarly when used in mesotherapy, emulsifying body fat and allowing natural enzymes to break it down. But whether and how mesotherapy works is still unclear, according to the ASPS report. Other important questions, including the possible effects of the procedure on the liver and other organs, remain unanswered, the authors report in the journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Mesotherapy is also expensive, with charges as high as $1,500 per treated area and practitioners generally recommend three to six rounds of injections over time. Research is ongoing and has shown slight promise in its results equaling that of current liposuction procedures. The main question mark is whether or not mesotherapy has long-term success. The procedure is called mesotherapy because injections are made into the mesoderm, the layer of fat and connective tissue under the skin. The method was developed by a French physician in the 1950s for the treatment of disorders of the blood vessels and lymphatic system. More recently, it has become a popular non-surgical alternative to liposuction in Europe and South America. Advocates say mesotherapy is far safer than the surgery, which, like all invasive procedures, carries some serious risks-including infection, blood clotting and, rarely, death. A major gap with mesotherapy, however, is the lack of standardization in the formulations and dosages used, and of guidelines stating, for instance, which patients are good candidates. It's also unclear where the body fat ends up after it's purportedly melted by mesotherapy. In the U.S., the individual components used in mesotherapy must be approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but their use in the context of mesotherapy has not been shown safe and effective. And the FDA has never approved a drug specifically for the body-contouring procedure |
