The service is run by San Francisco General Hospital and provides expert advice on HIV treatment. The side effects reported here appear to be linked to protease inhibitors, but further research is needed. A GI doctor in New York who's been treating people with HIV for many years isn't convinced all the problems are caused directly by protease inhibitors. He thinks some of the problems could be because of lowered viral loads and higher T4 cell counts. He also notes that the Walter Reed Army Institute study described here shows a definite link between high levels of fats in the blood and protease inhibitors.
Some people report that switching protease inhibitors has gotten rid of lipodystrophy symptoms.
After three months, seven people saw some improvement in their symptoms. The Australian group is looking at whether switching to a combination of anti-HIV drugs without a protease inhibitor will get rid of lipodystrophy symptoms. Only one Geneva report was about treating lipodystrophy. Although there were some improvements in body shape, levels of fats in the blood did not change significantly. A larger study is ongoing.