If your eyelashes have thinned and have less actively growing hair follicles, you’re likely a great candidate for Latisse® from New Look Skin Center and Dr. Etehad. This may be the result of overplucking your eyelashes when you were younger. It can happen due to a reaction to mascara over the years. It can be due to aging. Or you can have less than thrilling eyelashes.

The active ingredient in Latisse®, bimatoprost, stimulates your hair follicles to spend more time in the anagen/growth phase, where they may have been spending more time in transition or resting phase. Neither of those phases grows hair, and eyelashes are no different than any other of the five million or so hairs we have on our bodies.

The only real reason a person cannot have Latisse® (at least not at the present time) is if they have an active eye infection or other issues such as macular degeneration or glaucoma. Pregnant women cannot use Latisse®, as it has not been studied by the FDA in that group. 

For women whose eyelash decrease is due to alopecia areata, Latisse® may not be as effective. In most cases of this type of alopecia, however, the hair will eventually grow back on its own at some point in the future.

When you apply Latisse® to your upper eyelids, these are painless applications. You can think of it as similar to applying eyeliner. The goal is to get the active ingredient, bimatoprost, into the area where the hair follicles are located. That way it can kick those follicles back into the growth phase of the hair cycle.

Latisse® is generally safe and effective. The side effects associated with it are often due to sloppy application. This can create redness in the whites of the eyes. It can make the eyes itchy and red. It can also create dryness with the person’s eyes.

In very rare instances, Latisse® can darken the eyelids if it is applied away from the eyelashes.

Allergan is the manufacturer of Latisse®, and it is the company that provides Botox and many other popular, trusted aesthetic treatments.

Latisse® is very easy to use. It only takes a few minutes every night just before bed to apply Latisse®. You simply apply it to your upper eyelashes using the sterile applicators that are included with a prescription of Latisse®.

Latisse® works best when it is applied to clean, dry skin. You’ll want to remove all of your eye makeup and take out your contact lenses (if you wear them) before applying Latisse®. It’s a good thing to do as part of your nightly routine before going to bed.

No. These are simple topical applications. There isn’t any pain or any recovery involved.

Latisse® has been approved by the FDA for growing longer, thicker eyelashes. It has been proven through clinical trials. When applying for FDA approval, Allergan provided testing that showed Latisse® to be effective in 78% of the participants at the conclusion of the 16-week test period. Specifically, patients using Latisse® experienced a:

• 25% increase in lash length
• 106% increase in lash thickness/fullness
• 18% increase in lash darkness