Lash-Lengthener Latisse Is Glaucoma Drug Lumigan's Second Life

Dec. 29, 2008 — -- Some people might look at Meiko Catron, a native of Japan, and find her tilted eyes exotic and attractive. But 61-year-old Catron, who lives in St. Louis, finds them lacking.

"I have a great head of hair, but the eyelashes are so short," Catron said.

That changed in the eight-month period during which she participated in a clinical trial to test a drug that glaucoma patients have used for almost a decade to stave off blindness. Catron has never been diagnosed with glaucoma; instead, she may be among the first to use this drug for its unusual side effect.

"My eyelashes were so much longer," Catron said. "I just couldn't believe it. I never ever, ever had long eyelashes."

Allergan, the pharmaceutical company that also manufactures Botox, conducted the trial Catron participated in to test Latisse, a variation of Lumigan, Allergan's glaucoma drug, and its effectiveness as a lash enhancer. The Food and Drug Administration approved Latisse earlier this month.

Dr. Scott Whitcup, Allergan's executive vice president of research and development, said researchers at Allergan noted the eyelash-enhancing side effects of Lumigan eye drops during the phase three trials for the drug.

"At the time, we began thinking of developing Lumigan as a treatment for eyelash growth," Whitcup said.

Like Lumigan and its active ingredient bimatoprost, many medicines or medical treatments can get a second life if their side effects are found practical, useful or desirable.

Botox, a paralytic agent, was originally approved by the FDA in 1989 to treat nerve spasms, particularly around the eye, which caused crossed eyes or uncontrollable blinking. But users discovered their skin showed fewer wrinkles after the injections and the FDA approved Botox for cosmetic use in 2002.