The role of eyelash dyes in allergic eye diseases.

A case-control study was carried out on 544 patients who attended our out-patient eye clinic from 1998 to 2002 to determine the role of eyelash dye in allergic eye diseases. There were 272 cases who had allergic eye disease and 272 controls who were patients with no allergic eye disease. The results showed that 51.8% of all patients used eyelash dyes, 70.8% of whom used homemade dyes. Atotal of 82.6% of patients reported the worsening of the eye condition after starting the use of eyelash dyes. Of the 272 cases, 63.2% used eyelash dyes; in the control group, 40.4% used eyelash dyes. This was a statistically significant difference. It was concluded that eyelash dyes can be one of the major precipitating/aggravating factors in allergic eye diseases.