A horror hair dye reaction gave a man a giant ‘balloon head’ and left him looking like the cartoon character ‘Megamind’.
Ryan Briggs, from Blackburn, Lancashire, said his inflating head became so bad it left his girlfriend unable to even look at him.
Shocking photos show how the 27-year-old’s reaction to the application of black hair dye progressed from a rash to inflation of his scalp, before spreading to his entire face.
Seeking medical aid, doctors eventually have him a series of 25 daily tablets to bring the incredible swelling under control.
Mr Briggs’s ordeal started late last month on July 27 when his mother bought him some black hair dye to cover up a few new grey hairs.
Ryan Briggs, from Blackburn, Lancashire, originally thought a nasty rash was the worst he would suffer from a hair dye that didn’t agree with his scalp
However, it was just the start of an allergic reaction to hair dye ingredient that left the 27-year-old with a gradually inflating head
But even this wasn’t the worst of it, with the reaction eventually spreading to the gas installer’s face, impacting his ability to see
The gas installer then applied the formula over his scalp but without doing an advised patch test to see how his skin would react.
Mr Briggs said he felt a burning sensation but assumed this was normal, and subsequently went to sleep.
A few hours later he woke up to see a scaly rash had developed around his hairline.
Assuming the unfortunate reaction was the worst of it, he then headed to work as normal.
However, he was horrified to see his head start to expand throughout the day, leaving him with an incredibly itchy ‘balloon head’.
After being sent home by colleagues, he went to hospital where medics told him to come back the next day if the reaction got worse, to the horror of his girlfriend who ‘couldn’t even look at him’.
Unfortunately the swelling continued, with the reaction spreading to his face and causing such disfiguration that he couldn’t open one of his eyes.
Taken back to hospital by ambulance medics told Mr Briggs he had suffered a reaction to paraphenylenediamine, a chemical commonly found in hair dyes.
Recalling his ordeal Mr Briggs said: ‘I should have done a patch test really but I didn’t know that you had to do that.’
‘I applied the dye and it did burn a little bit but I thought that’s what it does. Obviously it wasn’t.’
‘The day after I woke up with a tiny bit of a rash. It wasn’t that bad but throughout the day my head started expanding.’
He added: ‘My colleagues said “you need to get to the hospital”.’
‘I didn’t look like myself at all. It was horrible. It was massive. I looked like Megamind.
‘I went to hospital and they sent me home and said if it gets worse to come back the day after.
‘I went home and my girlfriend was gobsmacked, she couldn’t look at me because I didn’t look like me, I had this big balloon head.’
The following day Mr Briggs returned to the hospital where he was monitored by doctors for 13 hours.
Medics had to ensure the swelling didn’t reach his neck and critically his airway, before he was discharged.
Mr Briggs described the initial head inflation as leaving him looking akin to the animated film character Megamind
As the day wore on Mr Briggs said his ballooning head became so bad it left his girlfriend ‘unable to even look at him’
Mr Briggs would eventually have to spend over 13 hours in hospital as medics were concerned the reaction to spared to his neck potentially impacting his ability to breath
He had to take a series of 25 daily tablets for the next five days to bring the reaction under control.
Thankfully, the swellling had resolved after a week of treatment.
However, Mr Briggs says he’s been left with scabs across his scalp and is warning other Brits seeking to banish errant grey hairs to always do a patch test first.
‘My scalp is full of yellow and green scabs but my face has gone back to normal now,’ he said.
‘Always do a patch test. It could have been worse, it was going down into my neck and everything.
‘I’m glad it’s over now but definitely do patch test, one million percent.’
The NHS 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’.
The health service warns that many permanent and some semi-permanent hair dyes contain paraphenylenediamine, which the NHS describes as a ‘known irritant and allergen’ and the levels are typically higher in darker dyes.
