Microblading is one of the hottest beauty trends today. The procedure gives women fuller and more defined brows.
The beauty treatment, however, comes with a risk and one woman is speaking out after a microblading session at a salon caused her infection so severe she had to spend days at the hospital.
Hospitalized After Microblading Session
The woman from Detroit was happy with the results of her microblading but after a few days, she noticed redness and small bumps on her brows.
She was diagnosed with a common bacterial skin infection called cellulitis and prescribed to take antibiotics but the symptoms worsened. She headed to the ER and was eventually hospitalized for three days.
"I was terrified," she said. "My face is swelling up, my eyes are closing, [I'm] thinking, 'I don't know what's gonna happen.'"
Her dermatologist said that the skin infection could have been lethal. Behind the inflamed skin are sinus cavities, which could have served as pathway for the infection to spread through the brain.
Risks Of Microblading
All cosmetic procedures, which include microblading and permanent makeup tattoo, come with potential health risks.
The procedure is much like that of a tattoo. Tiny needles are used to sculpt the eyebrows' shape. In a 2014 study published in the journal, Clinical Interventions in Aging, researchers said that cosmetic tattooing carries the same risks as other types of tattoo procedures. In 2017, a man who went swimming after undergoing tattoo procedure contracted the flesh-eating bacteria Vibrio vulnificus and died because of the infection.
"Cosmetic tattoos bear the same risks as other tattoo procedures," the researchers wrote in their study. "We report on fading and unintended hyperpigmentation after tattooing on eyebrows and eyelids, and discuss the scientific and anatomical background behind the possible cause."
People who want to go through these procedures should also be aware that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not regulate the color additive substances in pigments that are used in these treatments. Allergic reactions to pigments used for the procedure could occur.
Because microblading breaks the skin, there is potential risk for transmission of infectious diseases, which include bacterial skin infections and even HIV. This could happen with use of unsterile tools and equipment.
Although it is normal to feel discomfort and pain during the procedure and a residual stinging afterward, it is not normal to experience severe pain in the affected area after the microblading. Any sign of excessive redness or yellow-tinged discharge could indicate an infection.
