ASNA: "Companies offering Lipodissolve not authorized by ASAL Lipodissolve - cause safety concerns "

ASNA, OCTOBER 25, 2007 -- A growing number of concerns have been raised on the many companies trying to make a fast buck by using our business name and our reputation. They set up websites and companies using the name Lipodissolve, or purport to offer “Lipodissolve” (which is patent and copyright pending) but are not certified, or endorsed through ASAL to do so. These companies are not providing actual Lipodissolve, or Injection Lipolysis.

If you see a company that you think is disguising itself as a genuine ASAL Lipodissolve provider or that is trying to piggyback off the Lipodissolve brand in any way, or jeopardize patient safety with new procedures touted under the name Lipodissolve, then please help us to protect both the consumer and our brand.

Please email any information to asnaadmin@gmail.com or fax us on 208-330-9903 and indicate if at any stage you have been under the impression that a company you have seen offering Lipodissolve, has provided medical treatments you believed to be the ASAL Lipodissolve treatment. Or that the company offer medical treatment relied upon from ASAL Lipodissolve safety reports while not being listed in our 'find a doc' section. Include your signature and contact details in your letter.

We are informed that Go Fig, also known as Advanced Lipodissolve Center, with headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri, has received over 90 complaints to the Better Business Bureau in St. Louis alone. But since the opening of Advanced Lipodissolve Center, ASAL (developers of Lipodissolve) filed a lawsuit against the company, in concern of patient safety and infringement of the business name. We have strongly disagreed since 2006 that Go Fig is providing ASAL Lipodissolve treatments. Lipodissolve demand has grown considerably in the United States due to positive reports and high safety data from our published studies. Like many new companies jumping onto the trend, Go Fig has been piggybacking on the Lipodissolve name to provide modified treatments of their own, with no safety record, and earning profits of an estimated $26 million in one year.

Lipodissolve misuse is increasing, and seminars offering Lipodissolve is multiplying everywhere. But who are these people? And do they actually teach and promote Lipodisolve? Always assure that Lipodissolve providers are listed in our 'find a doc' section. If you have concerns that a certified provider may be offering mesotherapy of other modified treatments under the name Lipodissolve, notify us. The main concern with Lipodissolve treatments is not that the actual procedure is unsafe, but that there are clinics out there that do not follow Lipodissolve protocols and use the name in their clinical practice for some other treatment. Lipodissolve or Injection Lipolysis is not a name for all phosphatidycholine injections. The actions by Fig has affected the reputation of Lipodissolve while the genuine treatment itself has had excellent safety data for several years, with high customer satisfaction. Go Fig has never been certified by ASAL in Lipodissolve and the company is not following the standard protocols for Lipodissolve treatments. We are aware of no Fig and Advanced Lipodissolve Center published study of the treatment they provide. Our studies by physicians, who have worked with ASAL and ASAL Lipodissolve, reflect protocols unique for ASAL Lipodissolve. The medications recommended in ASAL Lipodissolve is only referred from two pharmaceutical suppliers in the country for better monitoring on safety reports. In more than 11,000 treatments by our members, no adverse reactions were seen in a single case where protocols were followed. The mass advertisement caused by Fig compelled some users to try adjusting protocols to imitate Fig, adding excessive deoxycholate and other compounds that is not endorsed by ASAL and not a part of the Lipodissolve protocols. This has lead to cases where some patients have had dents, infections, and needed skin grafts.

Fig has not been a customer of the pharmaceutical suppliers in the United States that we refer to, but compound their own concoctions which they call PCDC, and rely on excess deoxycholate use. Published studies by our physicians are only related to the original Lipodissolve developed by ASAL and have no connection to any assurance of safety of the treatments given by companies where unknown protocols, excessive number of sessions and unknown aggressive medications are common.

Our members have expressed serious concerns over the exaggerated and aggressive marketing efforts by companies like Fig and others that change treatment protocols or portray their modified treatments as Lipodissolve. Like all cosmetic procedures, Lipodissolve is a medical procedure that require certification and should be used by physicians only. It is necessary that users refer to the actual protocols when providing this treatment.

(BELOW): Brand thieving and public deception through false advertising. The company Fig try to lure potential customers to believe that their treatments are genuine Lipodissolve and supported by research conducted by ASAL physicians.

(BELOW) Sample of deceptive advertising to encourage the public to believe Fig's treatments are supported by clinical data - our clinical data.
In actuality the company has modified protocols and there is not one (1) clinical safety data published anywhere, in any publication on actual Fig or Advanced Lipodissolve Clinic and treatment protocols as of October 26, 2007. Meanwhile the company has earned millions in piggybacking on ASAL's Lipodissolve.