Tolerability of cosmetic products on the ocular surface

At the World Ophthalmology Congress in Vancouver, Canada, Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO, presented a paper on the tolerability of cosmetic products on the ocular surface. She sat down with Ophthalmology Times to discuss the topic in further detail.

Video Transcript:

Editor's note: The below transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.

David Hutton:

I'm David Hutton of Ophthalmology Times the world. Ophthalmology Congress was held August 16 to 19 in Vancouver. Dr. Mahnia Madan presented a paper titled "Lumify Eye Illuminations Cosmetic Products Have a Favorable Safety and Tolerability Profile in Healthy Women." Thanks so much for joining us today. First, tell us about the primary objectives of the study, as well as the key endpoints used to measure safety and tolerability.

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

Absolutely. A pleasure to be here this morning. I'm actually very excited to share the results of our study here. But before I do that, just a little bit of background. As you know, the TFOS Lifestyle Report came out. It shed a light on the fact that many of the cosmetic products that are used on the delicate skin around the eye and in close proximity to the eyes are not always tested and can be actually harmful to the ocular surface, the tear film and the meibomian glands. The cosmetic industry definitely needs more products that are tested to be safe for the eyes. A lot of our patients always ask us for products that are safe, and we simply don't have any answers for them. So, this was actually a very neat study, and the purposes of this study was to actually evaluate the ocular safety and performance of three lumify eye products made by B+L, which we recognize as a trusted eyecare company. So, the 3 products that we tested in this study are the lash and brow serum that did not contain any prostaglandins. We also tested a brightening eye cream to be used around the delicate area around the under eyes. And then we also tested the micellar water eye makeup remover.

David Hutton:

How was the study conducted?

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

This study was conducted at a research center in Texas, and the criteria was that we had about 50 healthy females testing each of the products, and they varied from different backgrounds and different Fitzpatrick skin types, and they all had concerns like sensitive skin, dark circles and crows feet. And so what we were testing was, you know, the safety of these products, but also their performance. Because not only do we want to have, obviously, products that are safe around our eyes, but we also want to see if they perform to the level that we want them to. And so that was kind of the criteria that we were evaluating.

David Hutton:

What are some of the key findings regarding the safety and tolerability of Lumify?

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

Yeah, so what we found was that all products were very well tolerated. There were minimal adverse reactions reported by participants, and all participants had a clinical assessment by a healthcare professional to confirm that there were no negative impacts on the ocular surface or the meibomian glands. So, the data was actually very promising, confirming that there were no safety concerns with any of the products. And, you know it was actually very exciting to also note that there were great performances that were seen with these products. At about 8 weeks, the lash and serum group showed that over 70% of the participants had improvement in eyelash length and fullness. And over 90% of those participants also showed improvement in brow thickness and fullness. In the eye serum group, the ones that were using thebrightening eye cream, we noted that 60% of those participants had improvement in their crow's feet, dark circles and puffiness. And in the eye makeup remover group, we noted that 97% of those patients reported improved skin smoothness, and over 70% showed improvement in both skin radiance and brightness. So, it really kind of goes to show really great performance by all of these products. So, not only did they perform well, but they were also very safe, as they were tested by eye care professionals.

David Hutton:

Were there any challenges, hurdles or unexpected adverse events during the study?

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

No, I don't believe so. I think you know, we know that the ingredients that were used in all these products were safe, and so I don't think that any major adverse events were expected. There were two people in the makeup remover group that experienced a little bit of skin irritation and tightening, but nothing, nothing major.

David Hutton:

What do you believe are the key implications of your findings for ophthalmologists, optometrists and their patients?

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

I think as we're learning more about the eyes and the impact that cosmetics can have, negative impacts that it can have on the ocular surface and the meibomian glands and dry eyes, I think it's really nice to now finally see products that we can confidently tell our patients this is not going to harm your eyes. That's certainly lacking in the cosmetic industry, right? We know over 70% of females are wearing makeup very, very close to the eyes, and we know that these can seep in and have toxic effects. And the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act really hasn't been updated since 1938.

David Hutton:

What are the next steps for this research?

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

I think we continue to look forward to performing and bringing more products and to make it better, not only for eye care professionals, but for our patients.

David Hutton:

And lastly, what other areas of research do you think are important to explore regarding the use of cosmetic products in eye care?

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

I think again, just you know, not only just testing the safety of these products, but again, tolerability and looking at their performance over time is very important for consumers. Let's face it, all of us want to look beautiful. We want to use these, but we don't know what long term implications of these things can be for the delicate structures of our eyes.

David Hutton:

Do you have any financial disclosures related to this content?

Mahnia Madan, OD, FAAO:

Yes, I am a consultant and a speaker for Bausch + Lomb.