Lipodystrophy syndrome(s)

November 2001     View PDF     En español

Treating lab abnormalities

Several small studies have looked at using specific drugs to treat some of the lab abnormalities associated mainly with using protease inhibitors. There are mixed reports of using anti-lipidemic medications such as clofibrate (Atromid) and gemfibrozil (Lopid) to lower triglyceride levels. Similarly, there are mixed results with using the statin inhibitors such as fluvastatin (Lescol), atorvastatin (Lipitor), lovastatin (Mevacor), pravastatin (Pravachol) and simvastatin (Zocor).

One study showed that combining gemfibrozil (Lopid) and atorvastatin (Lipitor) lowered lipid levels to the normal range in about half the people. Another study showed that metformin (Glucophage) reduced central obesity and insulin resistance but also led to an average 2kg weight loss. Finally, one other study showed that troglitazone (Rezulin) lowered glucose levels but had no effect on lipid levels.

People on protease inhibitors who consider experimenting with these statin inhibitors should talk to their healthcare providers about possible drug interactions and dose adjustments. The same liver enzyme processes both these two classes of drugs, and there’s a strong potential for interaction.