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Mar 24, 2008 5:34 pm US/Central
Woman Suffering After Weight-Loss Injection
Woman Was Former "Fig" Client
DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
Former clients say a company promised to help them lose inches all with a simple injection. But for many, all they've been left with are serious health issues and debt.
Go Fig Inc., which does business as Fig, provided Lipodissolve treatments, a process in which injections of a compound substance melts fat and flushes it from the body.
At first, some former clients of Fig said they experienced pain, swelling and ugly nodules just under the skin. Now some are reporting serious health problems, and doctors are warning their patients to stay away from the so-called fat dissolving injections.
Paige Tate has lost more than 20 pounds. But she didn't shed the weight using a weight loss plan. She said persistent vomiting is now a way of life.
"I'm so hungry," Tate said. "I just want to eat, and I can't keep it in."
She believes this is a direct result of undergoing a procedure called Advanced LipoDissolve administered by Fig. She chose them over a tummy tuck procedure because she didn't want to go through surgery. She said Fig promised it could make inches disappear with the fat burning injections, but Tate said the pain that resulted was unbearable.
"After the second time she came home, I said, 'We need to stop this,'" said her husband Charles. "It's not working and something bad is happening."
Since October, Tate said she has been suffering from what she calls excruciating back pain. She's had her gallbladder removed, and the nodules under her skin that developed after the injections aren't going away.
"I think they misrepresented their product by saying it was painless and doesn't have any side effects," said Dr. Bill Johnson.
Dr. Johnson said he is now seeing dozens of former Fig patients, many who reported having medical problems since receiving the injections.
"With LipoDissolve, that fat had nowhere to go but into your circulation," Dr. Johnson said. "And what does that do? No one knows."
The procedure used by Fig is known in the medical world as Mesotherapy, according to Dr. Johnson. He said it does work for a limited number of people, but there's no guide for who will benefit and who won't.
Tate said she was promised she would see results in four visits. Her primary physician now believes the treatments triggered Tate's illnesses. Dallas attorney Jim Girards said the former Fig clients don't have many legal options.
"Given the fact they're in bankruptcy now, that is really a double whammy for these patients who are waiting around trying to get some kind of justice or fairness out of this," he said.
"Any time something starts to hurt, I start to wonder what's going to go next," Tate explained. "What part of me is going to fall apart next?"
Monday, Tate received a letter from a local doctor offering former Fig clients more LipoDissolve treatments. Tate said she wants no part of that. She said she just wants to get better.
A Fig spokesperson nor the attorney representing the company could be reached to comment on this story.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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