14 DAY TRIAL // Tameka “Tiny” Harris, wife of rapper T.I. and a Grammy-winning singer and songwriter on her own, and a famous reality star, has permanently changed her eye color from brown to light blue, through a procedure known as BrightOcular.
As most celebrities do these days, Tiny took to her Instagram page to promote the procedure and show off her brand “new” eyes, but she has deleted the post since.
That’s because the procedure isn’t just very dangerous, it’s also non-FDA-approved for cosmetic reasons. The photo attached to this article confirms that Tiny’s post was online, albeit briefly.
A paid endorsement
“I permanently changed my eye color with Brightocular and lovin it!! Thank you Dr. Montasser Menif for the amazing experience and for making my dream come true!” Tiny wrote.
“I hated wearing contacts just for the color and it made my vision blurry! Blessed to say my vision is #perfect after my #ice-gray implants! Special thanks to #Spencer Vessa for ALL that you’ve done to make this process happen, you’re amaZing & thank you #Faiza for your exceptional customer service,” she continued.
The Grio reports that most BrightOcular patients who go online with their testimonials after iris implant surgery are nothing short of paid spokespeople. That is to say, they’re handpicked from the many patients who have had the procedure because they have had the best results, and then are paid to go out and talk about it as if it poses no risk.
A mere glance at Tiny’s Instagram will also reveal that she’s no stranger to paid endorsements, which isn’t that bad a thing – unless, of course, she’s promoting a dangerous procedure. Like she did now.
The risks of iris implants
On the BrightOcular website, you can’t see a single line warning potential patients of the risks involved in having the procedure done. And there are plenty of those, the aforementioned publication says, citing Dr. James Tsai, clinical spokesperson for the American Academy of Ophthalmology and glaucoma specialist at Yale University.
“The side effects and dangers are minimized,” Dr. Tsai says, adding that studies have shown the risks of iris implants include glaucoma, blindness, scarring of the cornea, development of cataracts, and sensitivity to light.
The procedure consists of placing an implant underneath the cornea, which covers the natural iris of the patient. The implant can be whatever color the patient fancies, with BrightOcular saying that the procedure usually lasts around 15 minutes and is relatively pain-free.
Dr. Tsai argues that most patients aren’t even made aware that some complications might arise, as they’re sold this “easy” and “painless” lie. However, one of his patients developed serious complications, and when she went in to have the implants removed, they came out with chunks of her natural iris.
Not an FDA-approved procedure
The iris implant procedure was devised to help people who had birth defects or a damaged iris, like in the case of burn victims. Getting the surgery for cosmetic purposes isn’t FDA-approved, so most US patients either go abroad to get it, or they find clinics like this one, the publication notes.
Dr. Shibu Varkey, a specialist on board the team of researchers gathering data in the hope that the procedure will get FDA approval in the US, tells The Grio that the implants show promise but that people with no real health issues, who want to get it only for cosmetic purposes, should wait until all research into the possible complications and side effects is completed.
All things considered, it’s no wonder Tiny removed her post shortly after she put it up on her Instagram, because she was basically peddling a procedure that’s not yet proven risk-free.