Wanna change eye colour permanently? Keratopigmentation is your answer!

WEB DESK: Dreaming of waking up with ocean-blue, mossy-green or amber eyes instead of your boring brown every day? Welcome to the world of keratopigmentation.

What is keratopigmentation?

The controversial medical innovation generates a lot of buzz and passionate debate when it is brought up. Yet, despite how much people are obsessed with different eye colours, the procedure seems surprisingly not as well known.

Read more: Mental health screening now ‘must’ before cosmetic procedures

The allure of a permanent eye colour swap is strong for many, however, realities behind this procedure are as complex as the human eye itself!

Procedure

Keratopigmentation involves implanting a medical pigment directly into the cornea, the clear outer layer of the eye, to create the illusion of a new iris colour.

Rather than dyeing the iris itself, surgeons make a precise microscopic channel within the cornea, filling it with pigment that settles in a natural-looking way.    

The concept was pioneered in Europe, and after years of refinement, only a handful of clinics in the United States – reportedly just two – have adopted the procedure; owing to strict regulation and specialised training requirements.

How does it work?

1. Consultation: Aspirants undergo a thorough eye health evaluation and select a desiredhue.
2. Surgery: Using a femtosecond laser – micro-needles – the surgeon creates a fine channel in the cornea.
3. Pigment Injection: High-grade pigments are carefully deposited into the channel, changing the visual colour you present to the world.
4. Duration and Recovery: The operation lasts about 15 to 45 minutes per eye – usually under a local anaesthesia and most people return home the same day.

The result? A dramatic and lasting transformation, with your cornea displaying your chosen colour day in and day out!

Why do people seek such a risky procedure?

• Aesthetic Transformation: Many want a long-coveted look that they have been yearning for.
•  Boosted Self-esteem: For some, a new eye colour is a key confidence boost.
• Medical Uses: In very rare cases, surgeons use keratopigmentation to conceal eye defects or scars, merging beauty and restoration
• Body Modification: This procedure have been most observed within the body medication community. Just like tattoos or cosmetic surgery, keratopigmentation appeals to such people. They claim feeling ‘unique’, with social media fuelling much of the curiosity and demand.

Pros and Cons: A Balancing Act

Advantages	Disadvantages
Permanent	Not approved by most medical boards globally
Maintenance-free	Highly risky – scarring, vision changes, infections, blindness.
Natural appearance for those that opt for more traditional hues	Long-term issues – light sensitivity, corneal shape changes
Rapid recovery – extremely risky yet patients reports little discomfort	Unknowns – due to its rarity, long-term impacts are not fully understood or even known
Versatile applications – hiding vision defects	Pigment removal is risky
–	Qualified surgeons – the specialised training and technology required means a handful of surgeons are actually qualified

Why so exclusive?

The fundamental barriers standing in a wider adoption of this unique surgery includes:

1. Regulatory roadblocks: The lack of approval from most medical boards creates legal hurdles and liability risks
2. Skill scarcity: Mastery of such delicate and complex technique with next-to-zero margin of error requires extensive surgeries and surgical precision that few can master
3. Concerned ophthalmologists: Most eye specialists advise caution on cosmetic colour change/

The Verdict: Daring or Dangerous?

While an adrenaline junkie just might talk you into skydiving, keratopigmentation might be the line even for the most adventurous of the souls.

Read more: The price of beauty: which aesthetic procedures are worth the investment?

The procedure is definitely not for the faint of the health or the ill-informed. While the technology is advancing, reputable eye health specialists caution that people weigh their options and expectations carefully.

While the possibility is real, the effect definitely stunning, but the costs and risks are life-long.