The craze of looking "perfect" has given rise to different types of cosmetic surgeries – including some whose risks clearly outweigh their benefits. We are talking about changing the color of eyes. An Instagram model recently underwent a controversial procedure to change her eye color and is now partially blind.
Nadinne Bruna, 32, lost almost 80 percent of her vision in her right eye and 50 percent in the left eye after silicone implants inserted in her eyes failed, Fox News reported.
The dangerous procedure is not approved in the U.S., but that didn't stop her from getting one. She traveled all the way to Bogota, Colombia, hoping to change the color of her eyes from hazel to light grey.
Bruna, who lives in Miami, Florida, underwent the procedure in September 2016, but immediately started experiencing serious problems. Her vision was constantly blurry and her eyes were red and painful for months.
"Before this surgery my eyes were completely healthy. They were in really good condition," she said. "I was so naïve. Ever since this surgery I have had blurry vision. For about a year my eyes were constantly red and itchy. My pupils, they can't adjust to light anymore so I'm very photosensitive now too."
She went to Colombia again, in March and June 2017 for two more procedures to repair the damage, but it didn't help and she had to seek medical attention at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami.
"In September I was forced to go to hospital in Miami where the doctors said they had to remove the implants to save my sight because of chronic inflammation," she said.
Ophthalmologist Dr. Ranya Habash, along with a team of medics, removed the dangerous implants in September, and Bruna underwent an emergency sight-saving surgery.
She added: "In November I had emergency glaucoma surgery in both eyes. My vision damage is permanent, and I still have to have a cornea transplant and I have cataracts too."
"The issue with injecting a silicone plate into the eye is that it clogs the drain of the eye, just like as if a sink was blocked," Habash said. "The pressure builds and builds inside the eye, causing inflammation and damaging the structures. There's a reason these procedures are not FDA approved and that's because we've seen the long-term and irreparable damage they can cause."
"Nadinne's eye problems are something she will have to deal with for the rest of her life. She's never going to be done with it," Habash added.
Although Bruna has not taken legal action against the practice, as she said that she isn't in the financial position to do so, she took to Instagram to warn others about the dangerous procedure.
"It's crazy, because even though I've been open about this surgery on Instagram, people are still asking me where they can do it," she said. "But I don't think surgeries are bad. I just didn't know the risks and I made a mistake by not doing my research. Next month I'm going to have a surgery to reduce my boobs because I've lost a lot of weight this year and it's something I have to do."
