An allergic reaction to the Facebook Virtual Reality headset, which he received as a Christmas gift, caused swelling in his eyes and required him to be taken to the hospital.
Lewis Gray (13 years old) was delighted to receive the Oculus Queest 2 from his grandparents. He could not wait to put it on his head and get gaming.
Kirsty Reed (33), noticed the reddening skin on his forehead and around his eyes the following day.
His eyes began to swell and he was taken to the hospital. Doctors said that it was an allergic reaction.
Facebook got 5,716 reported cases of facial skin irritation following the release of this kit, according to a recall alert.
Lewis was able to experience rare reactions after using the Oculus Quest2 virtual reality headset from Facebook. The skin around his eyes swelled, and then turned red.
Chris and Lewis Gray and Kirsty Reed (from left to right) pose with the Oculus Quest 2 that caused the 13-year-old to spend December 27 in hospital receiving treatment for an allergic reaction
The Oculus Quest 2 was a Christmas gift from Lewis’ grandparents, costing £299 from Curry’s. Red is the circled area for the protective silicone coating that came with the set.
A total of 45 consumers also reported that they needed medical attention.
Oculus Quest 2 (also known as Meta Quest 2) is a virtual reality headset that was created by Facebook Technologies. It can be used for playing games.
Lewis’ grandparents bought the virtual reality headset for £299 from Curry’s.
Mum Kirsty from Chertsey in Surrey said that her son played with the toy for a couple of hours.
Boxing Day Morning, he noticed irritation at his cheekbones.
Kirsty stated that Lewis looked like he was wearing blusher after waking up on Boxing Day having used the headset Christmas Day. Worrying swelling was noticed on December 27.
Kirsty gave her son Piriteze after noticing a slight amount of swelling following Lewis’ use of the headset. Lewis refused to use the silicone cover, his mother stated that it wasn’t obvious what purpose it was.
“It almost seemed like he was wearing blush.
“There was slight swelling so I gave him Piriteze. However, he has awoken the next morning and the swelling is nearly gone.
He woke up on Monday, 27/12, and Christopher Gray (39), rushed him to St Peter’s Hospital in Lyne.
Doctors diagnosed him with a delay allergic reaction due to his headset. They prescribed some precautionary steroids and antihistamines.
Kirsty shared that Kirsty was worried because she didn’t know the outcome or whether the stomach reaction would be worse.
Kirsty claimed ‘it doesn’t say anything could cause irritation in the information booklets that come with it’. This manual informs the user about possible skin irritation.
Anaphylaxis is a serious concern because of the severe swelling.
“The doctor had told me that if there is more inflammation or swelling in the eyes, we should go back.
He said, “It would have shut his eyes had it not stopped.”
“It is not very pleasant.” Lewis didn’t fully understand the meaning of this until he talked to the doctor.
Kirsty, a support worker, researched Oculus Quest 2 and discovered that it had been temporarily removed from sale in July.
Facebook, which owns Oculus in 2020, began to receive reports about skin irritations around December 2020. Oculus launched an investigation.
In April they updated the report to say that “a few trace substances are usually present in manufacturing processes which could cause skin irritation.”
The company stated that even though they were lower than industry standards, the quality had “changed.” [their]Reduce them further.
In July however, Oculus posted another notice on their website, stating that more headset users meant more case arrivals.
This said: “We received reports that very few Quest 2 customers (0.01%) were experiencing skin irritations after using the Quest 2 removable face foam interface.”
To protect headset wearers’ skin, they offered them a complimentary silicone cover. The offer was valid until August 24, and all new units will include it.
Kirsty explained that it was the foam inside the headset, and chemicals.
“But, it doesn’t mention anything could cause irritation.
“It took some digging to discover the issues.”
MailOnline received a copy Oculus Quest 2, safety manual, and discovered that it did mention skin irritations.
Although Lewis did receive the silicone cover with her device, Kirsty claimed that there were no instructions as to why. She did not use it.
Although there were some warnings about epilepsy, Kirsty didn’t notice any mentioning possible skin irritation.
She replied, “It didn’t come with any cover.
“It’s distinct, which leads you to wonder, If this is an issue why doesn’t the it be with it?
“It’s an extremely high-tech device for gaming that children really want, and it’s important to warn about possible risks.
“Why do they keep producing the exact same thing when they realize there is an issue?
Although Lewis is fortunate that he does not have any underling allergies, it’s possible for someone with anaphylaxis to get sick.
Oculus Quest 2, which is 0.01 percent of all users, reported that 1 out 10,000 people had experienced skin reactions. The vast majority were mild.
When the Quest 2 headset is placed on the user’s forehead, it can cause allergic reactions.
Oculus informed the mother of two that her son should stop using it and would be in touch with her for further information.
Andrew Bosworth (head of Facebook Reality Labs) published in July a letter addressing reports of skin irritation.
The text read, “We took skin irritation reports very seriously from the moment we heard about them. We immediately conducted an investigation, including consulting with leading toxicologists and dermatologists, starting in December.”
“Experts have suggested that irritation of skin can be caused by many household products, including shampoo and tomatoes. The rates that we’ve observed are consistent with our expectations.
“Our research determined that the manufacturing process of Quest 2 foam interface and manufacturing process was safe.
MailOnline reached out to Facebook to get comment. Although they refused to discuss Lewis’ specific case, they provided a link for a blogpost on the silicone cover. It is used to avoid rare skin reactions.