The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

  • Recent Posts

  • Recent Comments

    Mesotherapy

    In mesotherapy, medications are injected into the skin and underlying tissue. The objective is to improve musculoskeletal, neurologic, and cosmetic conditions.

    Not many clinical studies, but there was a safety alert in 2005.

    Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report documented a series of skin reactions on the torso and legs in 18 of 20 mesotherapy patients in Virginia and Washington DC. The reactions lasted longer than 3 days in 14 patients.

    The practitioner involved was not licensed to practice medicine, but had been traveling between the US and Columbia to perform mesotherapy. The report is not so much an indictment of mesotherapy as it is a warning to choose your therapist carefully.

    The most recent study was published in Dermatological Surgery in 2006. Ten people received a series of 4 monthly injections of a multivitamin and hyaluronic acid (hyaluronan) solution, which is claimed to prevent premature aging.

    Microscopic specimens and photos at 0, 3, and 6 months revealed no significant clinical differences. The researchers concluded that multivitamin and hyaluronic acid solution didn’t provide significant benefit.

    Dr. Maya Vedamurthy, a consultant dermatologist at the Malar Hospital in Chennai, India considers mesotherapy “a debatable addition in the therapeutic armamentarium in the management of skin rejuvenation.”

    Actually, facial rejuvenation is a rapidly expanding area of dermatology and plastic surgery. Background and options for “complementary” therapy of the aging face are summarized here.

    3/24/07 14:35 JR

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