The Health Surveillance Agency and the Rio de Janeiro Health Surveillance Institute (IVISA-Rio), departments of the Municipal Health Department, have already begun an epidemiological investigation to identify the brands of products used by patients and in which establishments the hairstyles were done or the products were purchased. Some brands of these ointments have had their sale and use suspended by the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) throughout Brazil, precisely because they contain ingredients in their composition that are considered harmful to health, such as those that cause eye poisoning.
Normally, the ophthalmology emergency room at Souza Aguiar Hospital sees around 70 patients per day. On Christmas Monday and the following day until 16:83 p.m. alone, there were 94 and XNUMX patients, respectively, most of whom were due to corneal injuries caused by contact with hair styling cream. There were children, teenagers, women and adult men, all of whom reported having had their hair done for Christmas and, when washing their hair, going to the beach or swimming pool, began to feel burning in their eyes, which worsened over the following hours. The main symptoms are itchy eyes, redness, irritation, burning and swelling. In the most severe cases, vision becomes blurred and the patient cannot see.
– Most patients present conjunctivitis or chemical keratitis caused by contact with the ointment. And the greater the amount of product that runs into the eyes, the more serious the injury can be. Some are arriving with very swollen eyes and unable to see, having to be guided by companions. These are considered very serious conditions – says the director of the Souza Aguiar Hospital, Paula Travassos, revealing her concern for the upcoming weekend: – If the situation is already like this because of Christmas, it could get worse for New Year's Eve, as we know that many people end the night diving in the sea. And we also have a forecast of rain for the afternoon of the 31st. Anyone who is using these ointments and gets wet will also run the risk of water with the chemical product running into their eyes – warns Paula Travassos.
IVISA-Rio advises people to purchase and use only products that are registered with ANVISA. You can check which products are registered at bit.ly/pomadasautorizadas.
