Can Eye Color Be Changed With Surgery?

Some people dream of having different eye colors. For this, colored contact lenses exist which can provide a temporary change in appearance. But what about something more permanent, like surgery, to change the color of the eye?

Surgeries actually do exist to change the color of the eyes! But, if you live in the United States, you’re out of luck since none are approved for use to change eye color (this isn’t necessarily a bad thing since these surgeries do have risks of damage to the eyes and/or vision).

The first way eye color can be changed is through an artificial iris implant. This implant is placed into the eye, unfolds into position above your own natural iris and then is sutured in place. These iris implants are actually being done in the USA to correct bad iris defects (but just not approved for use to change the color of the eyes due to the side effects).

Another way surgeons have figured out to change the color of the eye is with a laser surgery. This works with brown eyes to turn them more blue. A low energy laser is applied to pigment cells within the iris. Over time, these pigment cells are broken up and no longer give pigment to the iris. As the pigment decreases in the iris, the color changes from brown to blue!

While these surgical options sound intriguing, these options can have side effects which limit their use for cosmetic iris color treatments. So if a new eye color is desired, those colored contact lenses remain the best solution.

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