A drug designed to tackle debilitating eye diseases has been an unlikely hit with women who want longer eyelashes. Drugs authorities in Britain have expressed concerns about the increasing use of Lumigan as a cosmetic treatment after it was found to stimulate eyelash growth.

The treatment, which is available over the counter in the United States and on prescription in Britain, was developed to treat glaucoma, a condition that can lead to blindness.

During testing it emerged that one of the main side-effects of Lumigan is that it stimulates eyelash growth.

Lumigan can be bought in America for about $150 (£70) a tube in doctors’ surgeries and in health spas, and is applied using a small brush similar to a mascara brush. It is made by Allergan, the same Californian drugs group that produces Botox, the treatment used to smooth out wrinkles.

The popularity of the drug has triggered a race among pharmaceutical companies to develop their own treatments with Lumigan’s active ingredient, bimatoprost.

In Britain, 360,900 prescriptions for Lumigan were dispensed last year, a 40 per cent rise compared with 2005. The Medical and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has expressed concern that the drug may be being used for its cosmetic benefits rather than treating glaucoma. In the US doctors can prescribe the drug for cosmetic purposes because it has already been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The MHRA said: “Eyelash growth is a known side-effect of Lumigan. Lumigan and similar medicines are only available in the UK on prescription from a doctor and would not be provided for cosmetic indications.”

Leslie Baumann, director of cosmetic dermatology at the Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, said that a number of similar products were about to come on to the US market and that they could permanently darken the colour of the iris if allowed to drip into the eye.

Allergan says that those who use Lumigan may also suffer other side-effects, including redness of the eyes and itchiness. It also points out that the increased growth of eyelashes is not permanent.

American regulators are worried that shops are selling unlicensed treatments containing bimatoprost. Last week agents sent by the FDA seized thousands of tubes of a cosmetic called Age Intervention Eyelash. The FDA said that the treatments were “unapproved and misbranded”, although it said that it had not seen any evidence of harm to patients.

Allergan said that it took a dim view of those who copied its product. “We are very aggressive in protecting our intellectual property . . . we have already filed patent infringement lawsuits against companies that we believe are infringing our intellectual property regarding eyelash growth.”

It added: “Anyone who takes an active drug ingredient and then concocts a product to sell for eyelash growth is violating FDA law by selling an unregulated and unapproved drug that has not been subjected to rigorous quality-assurance requirements associated with pharmaceutical manufacturing.”

Bonus results

— Melanotan Known as the Barbie drug, it was developed as a tanning agent to fight skin cancer but is considered by some as the new Viagra. It is a synthetic copy of a natural tanning agent that the body produces after sunburn and was found to boost libido in men and women

— Minoxidil Originally an oral medication for high blood pressure, it proved able to treat hair loss and baldness. It stimulates growth in parts of the scalp that had stopped producing hair but exactly how is a mystery

— Retinol Developed to treat acne, antiageing properties led to its use in creams to combat wrinkles. The drug raises the rate of skin turnover and increases collagen, both giving a younger appearance

— Botox Developed from a deadly toxin to treat a rare condition marked by spastic blinking, now mainly used to remove wrinkles

Source: Times database

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