Injection of Synthetic Polymer May Relieve HIV Patients of Facial Lipoatrophy

Filed in archive Treatment on March 28, 2006

According to an article published in the March issue of the Archives of Dermatology, facial injections of polylactic acid (a synthetic biodegradable polymer) may help in improving the burden of facial lipoatrophy (loss of fat in the face) associated with HIV infection and its treatments.

Facial lipoatrophy or facial wasting, an additional complication in HIV treatments, may lead to anxiety, depression, self-image problems and difficulties in social or sexual relationships of the patients.

Changes in body fat distribution, including loss of subcutaneous fat in the face, may be a side effect of antiretroviral therapy and affect somewhere between 10 and 62 percent of individuals with HIV, the authors write.

The patients' facial atrophy began to improve after the second injection and remained visibly improved through the end of the follow-up period (12 months). Twelve months after the end of the treatment period, the total thickness of skin and fat increased an average of 3.4 millimeters over the right cheek and 3.3 millimeters over the left cheek.

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