A MAN was left with a head the size of the cartoon character Megamind after using hair dye.
Shocking photos show how Ryan Briggs’s entire head and face swelled up so much that his girlfriend felt unable to even look at him.
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The 27-year-old went to his mum’s house earlier last month and found she’d bought him some black hair dye to cover her new grey hairs.
While there, he decided to apply the formula over his scalp without doing a patch test.
Although he felt a burning sensation, the gas installer assumed this was normal and went to sleep.
When he woke, Ryan noticed a scaly rash had developed around his hairline.
While at work Ryan was horrified to see his face expand throughout the day.
“I didn’t look like myself at all. It was horrible. It was massive. I looked like Megamind, it was bad,” he recalls.
After being sent home from work by colleagues, Ryan went to the hospital but was advised to return the next day if his condition worsened.
This left his girlfriend so distressed she “couldn’t even look at him.”
The following day, Ryan’s face had swollen to the point where he couldn’t see out of one eye.
“I thought I’d wake up and it’d be gone, but I woke up and it was totally different,” he explained.
“When I looked in the mirror that morning I didn’t know what to think.
“I rang 111 and got an ambulance to come and get me as I obviously couldn’t drive as I couldn’t see.”
After he arrived at the hospital, doctors diagnosed him with an allergic reaction to paraphenylenediamine (PPD), a chemical commonly found in hair dyes.
Ryan was then forced to spend 13 hours in hospital while medics tried to stop the swelling from reaching his neck and airways.
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For the next five days, the workman had to take a total of 25 tablets a day to help the swelling go down.
‘IT COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE’
Online, the NHS website warns people to always carry out a patch test before using a permanent or semi-permanent hair dye, ‘even if you are using your regular brand’.
Despite his recovery, Ryan was left with scabs on his scalp and warned others to always do a patch test.
“It’s fully gone now,” he said.
“My scalp is full of yellow and green scabs but my face has gone normal now,” he added.
“Always do a patch test,” Ryan said. “It could have been worse, it was going down into my neck and it could have started to close my airways up.”
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How to protect yourself from allergic reactions
THE job of the body’s immune system is to protect it from outside invaders, like bugs.
However, sometimes the immune system produces antibodies in response to something that isn’t harmful at all, such as foods or medications.
The immune system’s response to such a generally harmless irritant or allergen is called an allergic reaction.
Most allergies aren’t severe, just annoying.
Symptoms usually include itchy or watery eyes, sneezing, and a runny nose.
But some can be deadly.
The only sure way to prevent a severe allergic reaction is to completely avoid your triggers.
You can also take antihistamines or other medications daily to help control your symptoms and reduce your allergic reaction.
If you have animal allergies, avoid petting, hugging or kissing animals.
Don’t allow them in your bedroom or on your furniture.
Regularly vacuuming rugs, carpets and other surfaces helps remove dust, animal dander, pollen and other allergens.
High-efficiency particulate (HEPA) air filters can also help.
These air purifiers remove airborne allergens from your environment.
Source: Healthline, NHS and Cleveland Clinic
