Corneal tattooing (also called an eye tattoo) is the latest trend of tattooing in the cornea of the eye. The reason that many people get this done is because of the aesthetic look and probable improvement of eyesight too, Many different techniques and methods exist to get an Eyeball tattoo along with different safety and concerns options that determine the success of this process.
Scleral tattooing is the tradition of inking the sclera or white part of the human eye. The color is not inserted into the tissue, but amidst two layers of the eye, where it widens out over a wide area. The method is not simple. Some methods have created damage of vision, hard permanent pain, and even permanent damage to the eye.
Eyeball tattoos are a comparatively new sort of cosmetic body modification. It is a bit different from the corneal tattoo we discussed above because it is performed by non-ophthalmic trained people. A syringe is utilized to inject tattoo color under the bulbar conjunctiva. Dyes employed for subconjunctival purposes are the same as the ones used for skin inking. There are important short-term dangers connected with this method, and the long-term influences on eyes and vision are distant given the recent demand or prevalence and lack of long-term follow-up.
People who go for an Eyeball tattoo must be aware that the procedure is not as simple as it sounds and might result in many kinds of temporary and permanent damage to the eyes. They must seek medical intervention immediately if they notice something bizarre happening. The eye care providers and doctors must also make themselves aware of this kind of popularity as it might lead to increased frequency of presentation to eye care services. However popular might it has become, it is still rare to find someone with an Eyeball tattoo and also someone who has anything good to say about this kind of design. It is definitely an extreme body modification.
No matter what kind of reviews have been put up on the internet, many people have still gone ahead and done this procedure by taking the risk. Some people travel across the world just to get this kind of extreme modification because not every tattoo studios provide service for an Eyeball tattoo. You must read more to know all about Eyeball tattoo:
Reasons for Eyeball Tattoo
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There are many causes and reasons for Eyeball tattoos which might vary from person to person. Most people get an Eyeball tattoo to alter their looks and for aesthetic purposes after a disease or accident. Other receive treatment or modification for optical purposes, which includes diminishing circumstantial glare with corneal opacities which has become one of the biggest reason for opting for this kind of cosmetic tattoo.
Reconstructive cosmetic purposes
One of the prime reasons for corneal tattoos is to alter the appearance of the eye in a cosmetic way. Usually, the need for this kind of alteration might stem from corneal opacity. Corneal opacity is the one that occurs from carrying off the corneal that creates an opaque or semi-transparent area on the eye. It can be caused by several reasons like leucoma, keratitis, or cataract. Such kinds of opacities can be cosmetically disruptive for people, especially in their everyday lives. Tattooing the cornea of the eye can alter discoloration, blending an opacity into normal eye color. Most doctors agree that the procedure must be performed only for patients who have lost their vision and can’t expect to recover from it.
Optical purposes
Seldom, corneal tattooing is completed when it might better eyesight. According to many studies done by famous physicians, suggestions for treatment involve albinism, aniridia, coloboma, iridodialysis, keratoconus, or dispersed nebulae of the cornea. Corneal tattooing is also done on patients who still have the vision to decrease symptomatic glare linked with large iridectomies or traumatic iris loss.
History of Eyeball Tattoo
The Eyeball tattoo procedure has been one existence for more than 2,00 years and was first mentioned in history by Galen, a 2nd-century physician. The methods, although can say to be changed with time and the frequency of practice have been faded. However, the methods definitely have evolved throughout history.
Ancient practice
Galen of Pergamum, a Roman practitioner, and scholar, first described and wrote about the Eyeball tattoo in 150 AD, and the same procedure was described then by Aetius in 450 AD as an attempt to remove any opacities in the eye. The physicians would cauterize the center of the ye with heated stilet and after this process, they would apply the dye into the eye which is made out of nutgalls and iron or pulverized pomegranate bark which is to be mixed with a copper salt. This would lead to staining of the cornea and would correct the cosmetic appearance of the patients. Some other sources also claim that Galen might also use copper sulfate during the time. This procedure was also probably just used on patients with slight corneal leukemia.
Development of procedures
After Galen indicates corneal tattooing in the 2nd century, the discipline is not noticed till 1869, when oculoplastic specialist Louis Von Wecker proposed a new system. De Wecker was the first one who introduced the Indian ink to tattoo the leukoma in the eye, He also gave anesthetic treatment to the eye by applying cocaine and then coated with the cornea of the eye with a thick solution of ink and added the pigment with a needle. His method was the primary one to influence all the other methods.
Ziegler recounts many practitioners who committed to the progress of corneal tattooing. Taylor came along with one of these, methods which used a bunch of needles to tattoo the eyes instead of a single needle. De Wecker discovered that this method was more practical than any other before. In 1901, Nieden offered a system that used a tattooing needle which was inspired by the idea of a fountain pen, or something comparable to the Edison electric pen. He pronounced that this electrical needle worked more quickly and assuredly than conventional techniques of tattooing.
Another doctor, Armagnac, utilized a little funnel that he attached to the cornea by three meager points. He would then fill the instrument with china ink and inset it in the eye with a needle. Armagnac said that his method could make a perfectly round pupil in just a single sitting. Another doctor, Victor Marx, did not use the tattoo method but changed how the cornea looked with other methods. He split the tissue of the cornea into two and inserted the colorful dye into the pedicle flap and then placed dressing over the eye to let it heal. Thus various methods have been used throughout history which led to the formation of the mainstream methods that have proved themselves to be most effective and which we used today.
In late 2007, Body Modification Ezine wrote an essay explaining the first three scleral tattoo methods displayed on sighted eyes. The professional by the name of Luna Cobra (Howard “Howie” Rollins) tested on three people, Shannon Larratt, Joshua Matthew Rahn, and Paul Mowery (aka “Pauly Unstoppable”, now identified as Farrah Flawless). Larratt got the impression after Dutch eye doctor Gerrit R. J. Melles gave Shannon’s then-wife Rachel Larratt an eye implant. The method is comparable to the traditional style prepared by eye surgeons who use implants on their subjects for numerous eye difficulties, with the variation that it is implemented for artistic ideas on perfect eyes with apparent implants. She had a little portion of light platinum jewelry injected over the sclera, which is the white coat of the eye, and under the conjunctiva, which is a translucent film incorporating the sclera. The program Melles had produced combined implanting a small trickle of saline to produce a fluid-filled pocket before injecting the implant into this pouch, which would slowly recoil and drop only the jewelry behind. Shannon then presumed the saline being substituted with ink, which would expand and finish up as a colored stripe between the sclera and the conjunctiva, providing the white of the eye a fresh color.
Being a tremendous supporter of Frank Herbert’s Dune, Shannon had photoshopped the picture of the blue eye of Fremen in the novel with his own eye. He and Luna Cobra then practiced to figure out how to get permanent blue color. In the end, they decided to run a few experiments on some volunteers who would have their eye colors. Out of them only one, Farrah is still alive which makes her the longest sclera tattooed person of the time. Both these professionals, however, due to reasons which are not related to the tattoo procedure.
Luna Cobra tried two distinctive styles, the first housing the needle with ink and piercing the eye. This program was considered worthless, and the second course was taken. This system, in which the sclera was inoculated with blue dye, was triumphant. The systems were mostly painless because there are not many nerve endings in the eye, as said by the article’s author Shannon Larratt. The side effects of this procedure involve “fairly minor” pain, bruising, and some trouble. Also, the author, who had the system presented on himself, appears to have some injuries amidst the sclera and conjunctiva. The author twice intimates about the dangers and likely complexities, the most significant including blindness, of the method and suggests that it should not be done without a licensed expert. Scleral tattooing is still a new body modification, and possible long-term results have since still not revealed themselves.
In 2009 the Oklahoma Senate established Senate Bill 844, listed by Oklahoma Senator Cliff Branan and approved by the Oklahoma Academy of Ophthalmology, to earn it the certificate of illegal, the tattoo of the sclera of the eye. The Canadian regions of Ontario (Feb 2017) and Saskatchewan (Jan 2020) have forbidden scleral tattoos and the implantation of eye jewels beneath the conjunctiva.
Methods Used for Eyeball Tattoo
The thought of inserting a needle in the eye is quite horrible for many but in reality, doctors usually give an injection in the eye which is quite a normal procedure. In fact, it is not really that painful even if the sclera has nerves inside it. The lessen the pain because the liquid in the eyedrop has a numbing effect and which then is added with a small amount of anesthetic into the eye itself before giving it a deeper injection that contains the actual medication. At the beginning of the 20th century, the eye doctor injected ink into the eye of patients to cover the scars though the whole practice was said to be obsolete by modern innovations in reconstructive surgeries.
However, with a needle pointing towards your eye, you wouldn’t want to get poked. It is something not everyone wants to get experienced with. This is only unless you are hardcore tattoo enthusiasts who are ready to take all the risks in the world to look a bit different from the rest of the world.
At a 2007 body-modification organization in Canada, three people literally offered to share a public demonstration in which they had their eyes jabbed with ink by tattoo artists. (Doctors are said to be asked for information, but none were ready to complete the method). The people used anesthetic droplets to anesthetize themselves previously, and it is said to not hurt too seriously later, though there were some trouble and pain later on.
The first subject was tested with the hand poke method in which the artist poked the eye and put the dye under the skin before modern technology came into being. It took almost 40 pokes to get it right and was actually a bit long procedure. The experiments were then switched to using a hypodermic needle which turned out to work a bit more efficiently. However, it is also extremely important that you get the needle down into the right eye. The after-care for this procedure as simple as it only needed antibiotic drops and patch tests.
Various plans survive now. Usually,y the colorful agent is applied directly into the cornea and then the artist inserts the needle into the eye where the dye is inserted directly into the cornea. The tattoo artist agrees that the dye must be added into the eye in a lateral way which will provide an appearance of uniform color and reduces the chance for the irritable eye. Some people may refer to the artist as a physician but it is not the correct statement to make. Thus it is advised that one must be careful about the kind of information that is to be read on the internet.
The methods in which the ink is applied to the eyes differ. In one of the ways, the doctor applies the dye into the cornea stroma by using multiple punctures which covers the needle with ink every single time. In another method, the doctor would cover a three edge spatula needle with ink before he makes each puncture. Then he would insert the ink into the anterior corneal stroma every time he punched. Samuel Theobald would then insert the eye with a needle first and then insert the ink with daniel curet. This is different from the procedure that others follow and would even prevent the repetitive puncture that is sometimes needed.
Staining method: It includes the direct employment of tattoo ink to the anterior surface of the cornea. Advantages involve fast procedure with normal dye employment. Deficiencies of this system incorporate the relevant consequence of dye finishing at a high risk of fading.
Impregnation method: Tattoo pigment is immediately included in the corneal tissue by needle puncture in this one. The advantage is the longer preservation of dye but a more complex and time-consuming method. Periodically deposited dye sediments can create light scatter.[
Lamellar keratectomy technique: Benefits of this method of tattoo cover longer preservation of pigment and the weaker chance of chronic corneal erosions. Panda et al. confronted a range of subjects who experienced conventionally (impregnation) tattooing vs lamellar pocket style and recorded more comprehensive dye consistency, no incidents of corrosion, and none of the evidence needed repeat prescription at 1-year follow-up.
Femto-assisted corneal tattooing (FACT): A femtosecond laser is utilized to create a partial corneal pocket into which tattoo ink is then inserted. The system allows the ink to remain longer and perform more consistent cosmetic outcomes.
Tattoo ink selection: Historically one of the main conditions of corneal inking has been the absence of systemic education showing biocompatibility of dyes and emerging unavailability of certain investment outcomes. A kind of sterile ink formulations has been described in the article. Micronized mineral colors are a comparatively new dye that has been determined to provide a good cosmetic display without an inflammatory reaction and ocular problems.
Another somewhat new design, presented by Arif O. Khan and David Meyer in an essay performed by the American Journal of Ophthalmology, recommends the replacement of the corneal epithelium primarily. The physician would then put a piece of filter paper covered in platinum chloride 2% onto the field for two minutes, accompanied by another piece of filter paper dipped in hydrazine 2% applied for 25 seconds. William Thomson studied corneal tattooing in a manner comparable to Nieden. He managed a tiny steel pen produced by Joseph Gillott, with the point turned into the cutting covering. The barrel would take ink for the whole process, bypassing the requirement to refill the ink or to improve the needle with ink. This approach would circumvent the limitations of other ways in which the ink prevented the physician’s incapacity to constrain where the ink range, which blocked the vision of the cornea to the surgeon. Plenty of methods endures now with different methods and tools.
Surgical technique: The tattoo procedure is done under local anesthesia. Following an eyelid speculum is set, the epithelium is separated automatically with a cotton-tipped swab. Depending on how much of the cornea requires to be inked, doctors can apply a 3 mm dermal punch to identify the middle of the cornea to produce a pupil, Dr. Reilly said, and then tattoo the resting state of the cornea. Take the excellent concern in getting proper pachymetry before the style to guarantee you won’t penetrate the eye with the pointer, Dr. Reilly said. It is also necessary to apply dry ink to limit corneal disease. The pure India ink is contained in a tuberculin syringe. Use a 27 g or 30 g needle, slope down, to imbed the ink into the anterior stroma, he stated. Because there is reduced compared with various corneal scars, hit tangentially to evade heedlessly penetrating the cornea and accessing the anterior chamber, Dr. Reilly said. Go bigger than you usually would with the ink because a specific number of it is going to get reduced, Dr. Reilly said. The important developments from the system incorporate infection, inflammation, pain, and unpremeditated insertion into the anterior chamber. A dressing contact lens with a local medicine and steroid both help to reduce the strain and pain after the procedure, he said. Oral pain medicines are essential because this can actually damage, Dr. Reilly said. He also provides them with a few rescue tetracaine to make sure that they are at ease.
Why People Get Eye Tattoos
Although eyeball tattoos might seem quite painful and dangerous, and of course weird for some, there is the reason why people get eyeball tattoos and we have discussed some right here:
- For sentimental reasons
A lot of people get inked because they have sentimental reasons to do so. It is done usually in the memory of someone who might have passed away or of an event that helped them take a different passage in life. But eyeball tattoos might be a bit different than getting skin tattoos. The eyeball tattoos can be sentimental when it comes to the kind of hues you want. Blue, for example, if has been a very important color in your life or your favorite one with which you relate, you can consider getting your eyeball dye with blue ink.
- For uniqueness
Skin tattoos are considered very mainstream nowadays because it has caught up with the trend and the enthusiasts are ins search of something new or something which will make them unique. The best way to stand out from the crows is to get your eyeballs dyed, isn’t it? It might be hard to believe for some people but would go to length to be unique. It is a question of their individuality.
- For the excitement
Some people get eyeball tattoos done because they find it thrilling. It makes them happy to know that they are quite adventurous in their own way. It is a sport for people who are passionate about tattoos because getting an eyeball tattoo might seem like a thing that everyone would want to do.
- For the pain
In fact, you would be surprised to see and notice that some people are interested to get eyeball tattoos because of the pain that they have. Believe it or not, for some, the pain brings in the thrill and rush that they want to feel and which makes them excited again. Getting an eyeball tattoo is quite an extreme sport.
- For oneness with your body
Similar to what standard Catt Gallinger said when questioned why she got an eyeball tattoo, people contemplate getting inked on the eyes to become one with their heart. Even if you own science books describing how your body works, there are however a lot of elements to explore within it. One of the steps to learning what your body can do is to question its conclusions.
This is precisely what scleral tattooing causes. By injecting dye into your eyes, it examines the opportunity of changing your body even the section where it has always been recognized as inactive. With scleral designs, you learn to be more at unity with your body because at this point, you know how it operates and you have turned it to accommodate who you truly are.
Inks Used for Eyeball Tattoo
Many various kinds of inks have been used for getting an eyeball tattoo. However, the most common type of ink that has been used today is the Indian ink which provides a safe and long-lasting effect on the cornea. There are other dyes too that include metallic colors in powered form, organic dyes, and other pigments from the eyes of animals too. Two other kinds of methods exist which include dying with platinum chloride and carbon impregnation.
Walter Sekundo et al., in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, assume that dyeing is more comfortable and faster than carbon impregnation, but it declines more quickly than non-metallic inking. The West largely employs dyeing. Some colors that are generally used are platinum or gold chloride, which presents a jet black smudge.
Carbon impregnation involves the application of Indian ink, Chinese ink, lampblack ink, and other unadulterated dyes. Snejina Vassileva and Evgeniya Hristakieva, both staff members at colleges in Bulgaria, state that India ink is reliable and long-lasting when suitably thinned and is the most ordinarily utilized today.
30 Eyeball Tattoos Designs and Ideas
Advantages and Disadvantages of Eyeball Tattoo
Some benefits of corneal tattooing cover the progress and merest healing method. Ji-Eun Lee et al., in an essay from Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica, say, “Corneal tattooing by intrastromal injection of India ink into the amniotic membrane space may be a very useful method of achieving a good cosmetic report.” Usually, the method is really thriving and decreases the cosmetic interruption of any corneal opacity. Corneal tattooing may also decrease flash within the eye due to iris loss and enhance optical acuity. J.N. Roy, a teacher at the University of Montreal, addressed it in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, saying, “Placing a bandage over the tattooed eye is not indicated; ordinary colored glasses are amply sufficient.” Surgery after the system itself is restricted, according to Roy, to tinted glasses.
Disadvantages
Some of the negatives that are associated with corneal tattooing include the difficulty performing the procedure and the risk that is involved during the process. Corneal tattooing is a process that needs precision. After the tattooed portion fades with time and does not remain much permanent. The size of the area tattoo might also reduce with time with oftentimes the results not being as expected and thus it needing more than one sitting. Also, the results might not last very long because multiple incisions are required and multiple lacerations might cause recurrent corneal erosions. In the end, not all leucoma respond to inking correctly. J.N. Roy admits, “All leucomas do not equally respond to intervention, which must be done only on those which present old, solid and flat corneal cicatrices.”
There are some considerable dangers linked to corneal tattoos which include going absolutely blind because of the procedure. Some patients also complain that they feel as if something is there in the eye and some slight redness. The ink might remain in the cornea and could also cause problems like keratitis. Other complications might include toxic reactions, iridocyclitis, persistent corneal epithelial defects, and corneal ulceration. In essence, corneal tattooing might not constantly work strongly, and doctors run into dilemmas such as fading, decrease in size, complexities, and short-term outcomes.
Globe penetration: High chance of having an injury to the eye which may produce transparent or subretinal hemorrhage, traumatic cataract, and retinal impartiality. Victims are in danger of diseases that might include endophthalmitis and orbital cellulitis. There has also been a case recorded of perforating ocular trauma following self-administered eye tattoos.
Ink-related reactions: Ink inserted into the eye can transfer within the aqueous chamber following in a cover of the lens, corneal endothelium, and trabecular meshwork. Subjects as a consequence may produce serious inflammatory different body reactions, uveitis, and/or secondary pigmentary glaucoma. There is vast research on the licensed developments of both dermal and periorbital tattoos such as uveitis. Hypersensitivity response to the tattoo ink may confer with nonspecific indications including inflammation, tenderness, redness, pruritus. Processing of subconjunctival hypersensitivity response includes local and oral steroids and oral antihistamines. Posterior scleritis and the expansion of episcleral nodules have also been listed.
Getting an Eye Tattoo Can Blind You
Getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo is simply one of the most bizarre kinds of trends that are going on in the world right now. You can find pictures online, some real, others fake of people who have transformed their white eyeballs into colorful ones. While you might see some wonderful experiences, you might also see some experiences of people who have gone horribly wrong with their corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo.
But just because some people have had successful surgeries with a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo doe not mean that it is safe to do. See how many people in the entire world get it done? and then compare the risks.
Dangers of eyeball tattoos cover:
- Decreased vision or complete blindness
- Retinal detachment
- Infection from the injection or ink
- Ongoing inflammation of the eye
- Sensitivity to light
- Feeling like something is in your eye, all the time
- Loss of the entire eye
Even if it does not damage your eyes in the above-mentioned ways, a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo also makes it hard for your doctor to examine your eyes in near future. In fact, did you know what corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo has not been scientifically or medically studies and the procedure wasn’t invented under the eyes of a doctor. If done properly, the process involves only getting ink under the surface of the conjunctiva so that the dye can reach the sclera which is the white part of the eye.
If you feel that the needle is not at the same place, the ink can go haywire and get inserted into other areas of the eyes like the retina or other sensitive tissue of the eye. Any of these mistakes have terrible results which will include loss of vision and pain. Because corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo is not like traditional tattooing, there are no training school or professional certificates like common tattoos have.
Dangers of Getting Eyeball Tattoo
Scleral tattooing was banned in Nebraska in early 2019, combining with the prohibitions in Oklahoma, Indiana, and the Canadian province of Ontario. Legislators in Washington state are also contemplating a prohibition on the corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo. In fact, most people would suggest you go against the idea of getting yourself a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo and instead of going for custom contact lenses.
Colored contact lenses are a great alternative for you and can be found online or even in any costume shop. You can find it in your local drug store too. However, it must be of good quality and must not be used until necessary. It is illegal to see contact lenses in some places without prescriptions. In fact, contaminated, artificial, or ill-fitting lenses can make their own blinding eye difficulties.
A lot has been already mentioned about the dangers of getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo but what are those exactly? Here you go:
- Increased headaches
When you get a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo you will notice more chances of getting headaches. Pain on the forehead would be passed on from the eyes. Thus the pain is most likely to occur after the procedure. However, after some time has been passed you will start getting used to the ink and it will lessen if not stopped. There are also pain killers that will help to decrease the pain but the doctors do not advise having a lot of pain killers as your body will get used to the dosage. Once you get habitual of having pain killers, it won’t work its effect and you might just have to increase your dosage.
- Eye infection
The infection in the eye can be a result of the ink or the needle itself. In any procedure that will involve a needle, you will always have the risk of getting an infection because the needle might not be sterilized properly. It also matters the placement area of the tattoo because the dirty surroundings would have bacteria flying around.
- Allergies
If you are sensitive to allergic reactions, then you must expect it to be with a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo. Different people have different reactions to ink and if you do not test the reaction to the ink, then the chance is you will seriously damage your eye. Allergies are quite dangerous when they occur in the eye. Some people do not take it well. The problems are more complex especially when it is related to a reaction in your eye. There might blesser or no nerve endings in your eye but an allergic reaction can lead to infection and damage the parts of your eyes.
- Sensitivity to light
You will notice an immediate sensitivity to the eye when you get a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo. You will feel that it is the part of the process that eyes are slowly adjusting to light but it won’t get any better and it is something that would remain constant with you. The eyes would feel it even with the slightest change in light and you can experience headaches.
- Blindness
One of the most extreme consequences is the kindness the of eyes. There might be surgeries that can help you heal your eyes but there is no guarantee that you will recover from it. The corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo can rupture your pupil, cornea, and sclera. The doctor too warns against getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo which might lead to various infections and especially if your eyes are quite sensitive to foreign materials.
- Blood infection
Whatever involves a needle, also has the possibility of getting a blood infection. When not healed properly the ink can go into the bloodstream which can cause infection to spread. When the blood gets infected with bacteria many complex situations arise as the blood flows to all parts of the body and would affect other organs in your system. Thus you must be vigilant while you are thinking of getting yourself a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo.
Things To Consider Before Getting Eyeball Tattoo
Like any other tattoo, a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo is something you should consider doubly, even thrice, about. Take a few days or even weeks so that you can acknowledge some of these questions and then proceed forward.
- Risk
The risk after getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo is quite high that even doctors recommend not using it. It is not really a medical procedure so there is definitely a lot of risks involved in this. There is not any medical or legal documentation on what to do when getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo. If you google it, you will find so many case studies on why corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo got wrong.
You need to think about the risks that are involved when you get a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo and see if it is worth taking? Can you survive if you face severe complications by getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo? You must not hurry when contemplating through all the risks that are mentioned here so take your corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo slow.
- Want
You can ask yourself how much do you want to get a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo. If you have enough reasons to get it. In the end, it will really depend on your desire to get a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo because no matter what people say, it won’t affect your personal desire.
You might need to think deeply about why you need to get this in the first place. Is it really just for body art or is it a scream for attention? Do you really want to risk it to look unique? You must think about the reasons which cause that wants and desires in you for getting an eyeball tattoo. It could be something quite minute.
- Readiness
Once you have already decided that you are quite ready to take the risks of getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo you must think if you are ready to do so completely? Want and actually going to get it done are two completely different things because loads of people want to get a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo but they don’t actually go ahead and do it.
Thus being sure is one thing but actually being read for the next step is another. It is not a painful process because of visibly lesser to no nerve ending in the placement area, but more than that, you have to be ready for any medical complications and saying goodby to your white eyeballs!
- Budget
Another thing that is to be considered is your budget because just like any other tattoo procedure, a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo is pretty expensive too. It is expensive because it involves a lot of things: the precision and ability of artists, the tools that are needed, and the risk that is involved during it all. The corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo is not like the regular tattoo where it is based on the size and shape of the design. The dye might not be all that expensive but the risks can cost you your life.
In actuality, it went viral for a moment that a Japanese man identified as Otomamay Haruki went to the Philippines because getting an eyeball tattoo was a lot more costly in Canada. Although both methods were strong, it was a big amount to spend both actually and as a matter of fact.
- Expertise
Lastly, if the risks and readiness still don’t judge you, you will have to do all the research for getting an artist who is the most skilled one and can get you the confidence that you need. There would be loads of artists who would come forward to do a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo for you but if you want to get this kind of tattoo done, you need to make sure that a doctor is present at the studio at all tome. He must also give clearance that you are capable of getting a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo. This might also sound very assuring.
What To Look For In Your Tattoo Artist
There might be many artists that would want to give you a corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo but they might not have all the best expertise in the field. Bad still, they might have never done it either because a fairly less number of people go for it. To choose the best tattoo artist, you must look out for these factors:
- Expertise
Not all tattoo artists are best at giving the corneal tattoo or eyeball tattoo because there are no “classes” or “training” for it. Thus it is important that you actually verify all the details that you can find about the tattoo artist so that the risk can be diminished.
- Studio Location
You must look for a studio that is near you and the artist si near to reach because you might experience blindness and sensitivity to light after some time. It is also the best deal if something goes wrong.
- Studio Cleanliness
You must also look at the cleanliness and maintenance of the place which will assure you the professional level of the artists and if the tools and equipment that have been used here are okay to use. You can ask your tattoo artist if the tools are sterilized before having double assurance.
- Customer Reviews
Most of the time, customer reviews on the internet or someone you know matters a lot. It is highly recommended too to ask about corneal tattoos or eyeball tattoos from people who have actually done it. You can also research online for the reviews if available.
Advances in Technology In Eyeball Tattoo
The modern advances in eyeball tattoos have decreased the price of getting your eyeballs tattooed for some years. Instead, some of the methods that are used to hide any kind of corneal scarrings like corneal grafting, keratoplasty techniques, and tinted contact lenses. Also, advances in technology have reduced the likelihood of acquiring a solid corneal leucoma, such as chemotherapy, antibiotics, and the delay of “heroic measures of therapy.” Although such advancements in technology have reduced the prevalence of corneal tattooing, some do follow it yet. Segundo et al. also consider that the incorporation of modern technology and traditional methods might improve the reputation of tattooing in the prospect.
Alternative Methods for Eyeball Tattoo
There are many alternative methods that you can think of instead of getting your eyeball tattoos which are done by bright ocular and are achieved by placing an artificial silicone lens on the top of the iris. The clients can select from a variety of colors and designs and even images that are made. The method is also useful as it makes it possible to remove the implant later in life to get the original shade of your eye back.
The new advancements in technology involve employing an excimer laser to provide the corneal bed for tattooing, lamellar keratectomy contributes to providing exceptional outcomes in terms of a uniform treatment of color but for many wounds, this is not permissible because of uncertainty, thinning staphyloma, or calcification of cornea.
Penetrating keratoplasty (PK) has the chances of contamination and graft rejection and its application for cosmetic purposes is ethically non-acceptable in various sections of the world due to the global lack of corneal donors. Mechanized kerato-pigmentation is yet another expensive choice. Alternative techniques to enhance the beautiful look of damaged eyes are corrective contact lenses, keratoplasty, wearing ocular prosthesis with or without an enucleation or evisceration.
With contact lenses, intolerance usually occurs after extended use while using an ocular prosthesis over a cramped cornea usually creates swelling, disease, and corneal corrosion. Therefore tattooing of corneal opacities nevertheless has a purpose in the surface elevation of homely corneal scars. Our research tried to examine the potential of corneal tattooing to enhance the ocular cosmetic condition, to prove its security, efficiency and to examine its potential as an option to invasive reconstructive surgery for the cosmetic reconstruction of damaged corneas.