Change the eye color
Today, many people wish to change their eye color, but by what means? What techniques exist on the market? Which are the safest? Which are the most dangerous and inadvisable? In this ultimate guide, we tell you everything you need to know if you are considering changing your eye color.
Colored lenses
You can choose your color and change it if you want; you can also decide to wear them or not.
But you have to be careful, especially for the lenses available for purchase online, which do not always meet the safety standards in force. It is important to know that the lenses do not give a 100% natural effect and that they move on the eyes. The edge of the lens is often visible, which affects the aesthetic result. Some patients develop an intolerance to lenses due to their dry eyes and will therefore no longer be able to wear them. Swimming with lenses is strongly discouraged because of the relatively high infection rate. Indeed, we must not forget that the lens remains a foreign body on the eye! You can read our article dedicated to the risks of colored lenses.
To illustrate this, below, is the testimony of Marie-Sophie Lacarrau explaining her 5 months’ absence from the TF1 TV show. She alerts contact lens wearers (colored or not) on the dangers of contact lenses and the complications linked to wearing them.
@leparisien Marie-Sophie Lacarrau est de retour à la présentation du JT de 13h de #TF1 ♬ original sound – Le Parisien
Note that a medical examination by an ophthalmologist is mandatory to validate the use of colored lenses.
Silicone implants
This technique consists of implanting a colored silicone lens inside the eye, in front of the iris and behind the cornea. With this technique, the iris will be covered by the implant, which will give a satisfactory cosmetic result.
Unfortunately, this implant almost systematically leads to serious complications such as glaucoma, which can lead to legal blindness. But also permanent damage on the cornea with the need to perform a corneal transplant. In short, you have understood, this technique is to be completely avoided!
Fortunately, this operation is no longer practiced. To our knowledge, only a few doctors in Iran and India still perform these dreaded implants.
Depigmentation
To change the color of the eyes, there is a third technique: the depigmentation of the iris. It consists of removing the surface layer of melanin from the iris with a laser. Since no laser in the world has been manufactured for the purpose of changing the eyes’ color, doctors use lasers intended for other functions (generally YAG lasers intended to perforate the iris as part of the treatment of glaucoma) to try to remove the superficial melanin from the iris, which gives a relatively natural result.
However, you will not be able to choose the color you want to have. Moreover, the result is only visible in strong direct light and is almost invisible in medium or weak light. A large number of sessions (sometimes more than 30) are required to achieve a barely visible result and the costs are very high. Note that for grades 4 or 5 (highly pigmented eyes), the results are almost imperceptible. Cases of glaucoma have been described. Although this technique is a dream for many patients because of its natural look, its satisfaction rate does not exceed 10%.
Aesthetic keratopigmentation
Aesthetic keratopigmentation is now the reference technique for changing eye color for aesthetic purposes. Neoris has been the standard-bearer since its creation. It is the safest surgical method for permanently changing eye color. It has excellent results and Dr. Ferrari has been performing it since 2013.
An innovative and proven technique: Neoris supports the development of this surgical technique by investing in research and becoming an ambassador for this method. Today, nearly one thousand patients have been successfully operated on by Dr. Ferrari and no serious complications have occurred, apart from temporary glare and dry eyes.
This method of eye surgery consists of applying a pigment in the cornea, via a microtunnel made with a femtosecond laser. The iris is not affected and no foreign body is placed in the eye. It is therefore much less risky than the placement of colored implants or depigmentation of the iris.
Precise and perfectly mastered, the surgical procedure is performed in a single session lasting one hour. The results are immediate and are visible in all light conditions. Vision is good even immediately after the procedure and is completely normal 24 to 48 hours after the procedure.
The aesthetic keratopigmentation method was first described by Dr. Ferrari and numerous scientific articles confirm its very low complication rate.
Keratopigmentation has many advantages over other techniques: it is possible to choose your color, there is no visible lens edge, no lens movement on the eye, it is possible to bathe if you have been operated on, the results are visible immediately and in all light conditions, and there are very few complications.
On the other hand, the aesthetic aspect up close is not 100% natural (a bit like with colored lenses). Unlike the dyes currently on the market, our range of pigments manufactured in France solves the problem of resorption over time.
Neoris, project leader
The permanent aspect of the eye color change is obviously a hindrance for many people. Reversibility changes the very nature of the procedure. A first reversibility operation was successfully performed in May 2022 on a patient’s eye (see image below). 95% of the color was removed, but it will be necessary to wait several months to ensure that there are no side effects of this operation on vision. If it is confirmed that this operation is without complications, we will be able to offer it to the rare patients who wish to remove their color. This new technique should be operational by 2023.
I love to make my patients’ dreams come true by changing their eye color: their reaction is always incredible!
— Dr Ferrari
