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What can be done after the fact for facial lipoatrophy?
Apr 25, 2008
My facial wasting has become more and more pronounced. What can be done to replace the missing fat?
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Response from Dr. Pierone
There are two general strategies for this problem.
The first is to remove the offending agent from the antiretroviral cocktail. One culprit is AZT, which is also known as zidovudine or Retrovir. AZT is also contained in Combivir and Trizivir. The other agent strongly linked to lipoatrophy is d4T, otherwise known as stavudine or Zerit. A number of studies have demonstrated that switching AZT or d4T to an alternative agent (usually Viread) leads to improvement in lipoatrophy.
The other approach is to treat facial lipoatrophy with facial fillers such as Radiesse or Sculptra which are approved in the U.S. Bio-alcamid is used for this indication in Canada and several other countries. PMMA is used in Mexico, Brazil, and some European countries.
I hope this information helps and best of luck!
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