Canada studies
facial wasting treatment

More than 125 Canadian HIV patients suffering from facial wasting have undergone government-backed testing of the synthetic gel Bio-Alcamid to help fill in their sunken cheeks, the Toronto Star reports. Health Canada started approving the injections for the pilot project last November. The agency expects to decide this fall if it will approve the compound for widespread use in the country.

Demand for Bio-Alcamid treatments is high, say pilot project organizers. In Toronto, researchers at the Maple Leaf Clinic had to choose project participants for the clinic's 30 available slots by lottery from a pool of more than 200 people who applied for the program.

A study of Bio-Alcamid in Italy showed that of 2,000 who received injections of the synthetic gel, only 12 people had to have the compound removed because of complications. The product is approved in Europe for treatment of facial lipoatrophy, as well as for use in chins, buttocks, noses, and other soft tissues experiencing fat loss. Bio-Alcamid is not yet approved in the United States.