Latisse is known to be the first product to treat eyelash hypotrichosis (inadequate lashes) and is widely considered to be the best. But if Lumigan has piqued your interest as well,  you must be wondering if there is a real difference between the two!

What is Lumigan?

Lumigan is a prescription eye drop used to treat people who suffer from glaucoma of the eyes or high eye pressure. It is meant to keep the patient’s sight by reducing the pressure in the optic nerve and stopping eye pain. It is applied by dropping the product into the eye similar to eye drops.  It can cause brown coloring of the iris and/or darkening of the skin on the eyelid and the eyelashes. These side effects may be reversible after treatment is stopped.

Side effects of Lumigan may lead to the growth of eyelashes, conjunctival hyperemia (a reaction that appears as dilation and redness of the eye), ocular pruritus,  itchy eyelids at the base of the eyelashes, or red and swollen eyes. Other byproducts include, “ocular dryness, visual disturbance, ocular burning, foreign body sensation, eye pain, pigmentation of the periocular skin, and lash hair darkening.”

FDA Approved?

Yes, it is FDA approved, but not for lash growth. It is approved solely for the “reduction of elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) in patients with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension who are intolerant of or insufficiently responsive to other IOP-lowering medications.” However, Latisse is FDA approved for hypotrichosis of the eyelashes or inadequate lashes.

How To Apply?

According to medical advice, remove contact lenses, or wait at least fifteen minutes after using Lumigan before putting in your contact lense. Tilt the head back slightly, pull down the lower eyelid, look up and away from the dropper and squeeze out a drop. Close the eyes for two to three minutes without blinking or squinting.

To keep the products from draining into your tear duct, press the finger to the inside corner of the eyeball. Be careful to not touch the dropper or place it directly into the eyeball.  A contaminated dropper can infect your eyes, leading to an eye infection or other serious vision problems.

Can Lumigan be used for eyelash growth?

Can it be used to accentuate and grow longer, darker, fuller lashes like Latisse? Technically, yes it can. The same active ingredients reside in Latisse and Lumigan but the concentration and application are slightly different. In Lumigan, bimatoprost is at a 0.01% concentration and the drops are meant to be placed in the eye. Whereas bimatoprost in Latisse is at 0.03% and is meant to be applied to the upper eyelids using Latisse provided applicator brushes.

Latisse is prescribed specifically for eyelash hypotrichosis, a condition that arises from inadequate amounts of lashes whereas Lumigan is prescribed and FDA approved solely to treat glaucoma. Using Lumigan for inadequate eyelashes means you are exposing yourself to a higher dose of bimatoprost than is necessary, putting yourself at risk for the extensive list of byproduct reactions.

While the products are the same and achieve the same results, applying an expensive eye drop into your optic (as opposed to applying Latisse directly to your eyelashes to achieve longer, darker, fuller, lashes) is simply not worth the risk.