Mesotherapy Injection Treatment

For years people who want to reduce cellulite and address specific fatty areas using medical or surgical techniques have turned to liposuction. However, liposuction is both a costly and invasive procedure. Recently, mesotherapy has become an option to remove unwanted fatty tissue. Mesotherapy is a technique that uses small injections into specific areas that, in theory, "melt" the fat away. As this technique has become more available and widespread in America, many are wondering if it really works. Let's take a look.

History

• Mesotherapy was developed by Dr. Michael Pistor in France more than 50 years ago. Although it took some time to catch on, approximately 15 years ago, the French Society of Medicine officially recognized mesotharapy as a legitimate form of medical treatment.

  Other countries' medical societies have begun to follow suit, and in recent years, major pharmaceutical companies started marketing mesotherapy medications and solutions to physicians in the United States. However, although practitioners often point to its more than 50 years of use in Europe, no clinical trials or studies have been conducted on mesotherapy.

  Originally, mesotherapy was used to treat localized pain and sometimes specific ailments. With time, Dr. Pistor discovered that adjusting the chemical composition of the injections allowed him to treat aesthetic issues such as cellulite. Today, mesotherapy is largely used as an aesthetic treatment by dermatologists and cosmetic surgeons and typically used for cellulite in the abdomen, thighs, buttocks, knees and ankles.

How It Works

• Mesotherapy delivers a customized blend of drugs, chemicals, vitamins and minerals to one or more local injection sites. The idea is to deliver the medication to the layer of connective skin tissue below the surface--the mesodermic layer. Some of the more common drugs used are an asthma drug Aminophylline, the anesthetic Procaine and Isoproteranol, which is traditionally used for heart conditions.

  The administering physician or practitioner will usually adjust the "cocktail" of chemicals to target the patient's specific needs based on patient size, amount of fat in the area and medical history. The injected solution is designed to break down fats in the area and flush them out.

  Because the systems of the skin have what is known as redundant circulation, a small amount of medication injected may recirculate through the targeted tissue for hours, days or even weeks. Thus, a little treatment can, in theory, go a long way.

How Treatment Works

• When visiting a physician or practitioner who performs mesotherapy, a patient will select, with the doctor, the target area or areas. The physician then picks how many sites--usually roughly one per inch of skin in the target area--and pinches the site where he will deliver the injection. Because the skin is pinched and is mostly in fatty areas, the treatment is usually not very painful.

  Injections are either delivered individually, or if there are many in a site, they may be delivered with an automated "meso gun," a mechanical device that rapidly delivers a series of injections. A typical office visit for treatment lasts 20 to 45 minutes and costs, on average, between $300 and $600 per treatment.

  There is no recovery time as the procedure is not significantly invasive. Most practitioners offering mesotherapy caution patients to drink lots of water to assist in flushing out fats and toxins and to eat healthy and exercise regularly as mesotherapy is not a substitute for a general weight loss program.