A woman has undergone an eyelash transplant after her eyelid was ripped open during a fall on a night out.
Itinder Kaur permanently damaged her right eyelid when she stumbled while out with friends five years ago.
The now 30-year-old, of London, lost a clump of lashes from the centre of her right eye when her friend accidentally dragged her across gravel while trying to help her up.
Surgeons at the Crown Clinic in Manchester transplanted 16 new eyelashes into Miss Kaur's 'gap' using hair from the back of her scalp.
Footage of the operation was shown at a conference, teaching dozens of surgeons from around the world how to perform the intricate procedure.
Itinder Kaur was left with clump of lashes missing from her right eyelid (pictured) after she fell on a night out five years ago. A friend tried to help her up, only to accidentally drag Miss Kaur face down across gravel. This ripped her eyelid open, causing a quarter of her lashes to fall off
Miss Kaur is pictured after undergoing the transplant, which involved taking hairs from the back of her scalp. These were then curled and trimmed so they blended in with her lashes
Surgeons Dr Asim Shahmalak (right) and Dr Parsa Mohebi (left) performed the £4,000 operation for free on the condition footage would be broadcast at a conference. This will hopefully allow medics from around the world to learn the intricate procedure
Speaking of the transplant, Miss Kaur said: 'I am thrilled to have my eyelashes back.
'It will be a few months before they grow back properly but then I will have lovely lashes right across my upper eyelid again.
'I cannot thank the doctors enough and I hope lots of new surgeons will start carrying out the procedure so more people can benefit.'
After her fall, Miss Kaur, an associate director at an engineering-services company, was rushed to hospital, where medics tried to repair the damage.
'They stitched up my eyelid but a few days later the stitches fell out and I need further surgery,' she said.
'Because of the trauma to the eyelid, blood stopped flowing to the central area and I lost around 25 per cent of my eyelash cover in my right eye.'
Although she does not blame her friend for what happened, Miss Kaur struggled to accept her new appearance.
'Before the accident, I had always had gorgeous long eyelashes and people used to say I had beautiful eyes,' she said. 'I was very proud of them.
'Obviously it was very upsetting to suddenly have this gap in my eyelash cover. Your eyes are such a crucial part of your overall beauty.
'I would cover it up by wearing eyeliner when I was on a night out but I was always aware of the problem. I chose not to wear glued on false eyelashes.
'I am so glad I have now found a permanent solution to the problem.'
Pictured before the procedure, Miss Kaur lost her eyelashes after the trauma of the fall caused blood to stop flowing to the centre of her eyelid. Around 25 per cent of her lashes later fell off
Pictured are the hair follicles that were taken from Miss Kaur's scalp for transplantation
This before and after shot demonstrates how much thicker her lashes are since the surgery
Eyelash transplants were initially developed to
