Permanent Blindness Linked to Use of Cosmetic Fillers

Use of cosmetic fillers to remove wrinkles may result in permanent blindness, a new study found

Scientists said that injecting fillers around the eye area for facial rejuvenation could cause irreversible damage, the Independent reported. The US Food and Drug Administration has approved the use of fat, collagen and other special cosmetic products, but only if they are injected in the middle parts of the face - such as around the mouth, according to Live Science. But doctors often use the substances as "off-label" to smooth out wrinkles around the eye and on the forehead, study author Dr Michelle Carle, an ophthalmologist at Retina Vitreous Associates Medical Group in Los Angeles, said. The fillers can then accidentally get into small blood vessels on the face, and find their way into the eye's artery and block its blood supply, Dr Carle said. She said that while this complication is very rare, it is very significant. A bruise will go away, but vision loss is permanent, she added. Dr Carle and her colleagues treated three patients who permanently lost their vision in one or both eyes after undergoing cosmetic procedures, according to the report. The findings are published in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology.

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