Patients injected by Wells with the Botox knockoff said they experienced unpleasant symptoms, including headaches, swelling and bruising for months following the cosmetic procedure, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Maloney.

Wells in 2004 ordered the fake Botox from Toxin Research International in Tucson. Chad Livdahl and Zarah Karim, the husband-and-wife doctors from Florida who ran Toxin Research International, were sentenced to prison in January after pleading guilty to federal fraud charges.

Wells "lied to his patients solely for financial gain," Maloney said in an interview. "This sends a message to doctors and to anyone in a position of trust that defrauding your patients or your clients will be taken seriously."

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The pastrami and cheesecake diet...

Last Updated: 2006-12-12 11:36:32 -0400 (Reuters Health)

NEW YORK - A New York federal judge on Monday tossed out a lawsuit by a Florida man against the company behind the Atkins low-carb diet that he alleged caused his cholesterol to skyrocket and necessitated an angioplasty.

Jody Gorran, 53, of Delray Beach, Florida, went on the Atkins Diet in 2001, admittedly eating mainly pastrami and cheesecake. After just two months, his cholesterol shot up to an unhealthy 230 from a low 146, according to the suit.

"Pastrami and cheesecake -- large amounts of which Gorran admittedly consumed -- may present risks, but these are risks of which consumers are aware," wrote Judge Denny Chin in his dismissal of the suit.

The low-carbohydrate diet, pioneered by Dr. Robert Atkins and widely blamed for a drop in sales of high-carb foods, involves eating proteins such as meat and cheese and limiting carbohydrates such as bread and pasta.

Gorran felt pain in his chest in the fall of 2003 and underwent an angioplasty to unclog one of his coronary arteries, according the suit.

"The average consumer surely anticipates that these and other high-fat or high-protein foods may increase cholesterol levels and the risk of heart disease," Chin wrote of the salty deli meat and cream cheese-based dessert.

The diet consists of only "advice and ideas" that are protected by the First Amendment, Chin wrote.

Gorran had sued Atkins Nutritionals Inc. claiming its products were "defective and unreasonably dangerous," seeking money damages and an injunction requiring the company to put warning labels on all of its products and its Web site.

Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.