NMR as Part of a Large Effort to Understand Why Hair Cremes Blinded People in Brazil

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The first cases of temporary blindness because of hair cremes were reported in Rio de Janeiro in march of 2022. Numerous new cases were reported over the next months, and by mid February 2023 about 1200 cases had been reported, including 1 case of permanent blindness. Due to this development, ANVISA was forced to issue a complete prohibition of all hair creme sales in Brazil until the reasons for this had been investigated.

A first analysis by NMR revealed that all suspect hair cremes had a very high concentration of ceteareth-20, a common emulsifier in hair products and known for being very effective in straightening curled hair. But, irritation tests revealed that ceteareth-20 does not cause temporary blindness. Hence, the possibility of a combination effect was investigated, were the high concentration of ceteareth-20 would act as trigger. A huge variety of possible factors were verified by the Ministry of Health, and a final result is still being assembled.
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