Piercing and Tattoos

Body piercing and tattoos are a popular form of body art that have been practiced throughout history by various cultures.

Description

Various cultures have embraced adorning their bodies with piercings and tattoos throughout history. In

Tattoo artist Michael Wilson displaying his own tattoos and piercings. (Photograph by Susan Mc Cartney, Photo Researchers. Reproduced by permission.

1992, the 4,000-year-old body of a tattooed man was discovered in a glacier on the Austrian border, and historical research has shown that Egyptians identified tattooing with fertility and nobility in the period from 4000–2000 B.C. Similar to tattooing, body piercing also has a rich history, which includes being used as a symbol of royalty and courage. In some hunting and gathering societies, body piercing and tattoos have long been used in initiation rites and as socialization/enculturation symbols.

In today's industrialized cultures, tattoos and piercing are a popular art form shared by people of all ages. They are also indicative of a psychology of self-mutilation, defiance, independence, and belonging, as for example in prison or gang cultures.

Popular piercing sites include the ear, nasal septum, eyebrow, tongue, cheek, navel, labia, and penis. Tattoos permanently mark various areas on the body.

Piercing is performed quickly and without anesthesia by either a spring-loaded ear-piercing gun or piercing needles, with the needle diameter varying from six to 18 gauge. The skin is cleaned, then the needle and jewelry are inserted through the tissue in one swift motion. A piercing is done without anesthesia and is typically completed in tattoo or beauty parlors.

Originating from the Tahitian word tattau, meaning "to mark," tattoos are relatively permanent marks or designs on the skin. An electric needle injects colored pigment into small deep holes made in the skin to form the tattoo. Prison tattoo techniques are usually very crude, in marked contrast to the highly skilled art practiced in Japan and also performed in America and Europe.

Causes and symptoms

While piercing and tattooing are popular, both present definite health risks. Tattoos can lead to the transmission of infectious diseases, such as hepatitis B and C, and theoretically HIV, when proper sterilization and safety procedures are not followed. Body piercing also presents the risk of chronic infection, scarring, hepatitis B and C, tetanus, and skin allergies to the jewelry that is used.

Body piercing and tattooing are unregulated in most United States states, but illegal in some. The American Dental Association (ADA) opposes oral (tongue, lip or cheek) piercing, and the American Academy of Dermatology is against all forms of body piercing except ear lobe piercing.

Diagnosis

Some of the signs of an infection from either piercing or tattoos are obvious, such as inflammation of the pierced or tattooed area, while the symptoms of hepatitis C, the most common blood-borne infection in the United States, may not be so obvious. Allergic responses to tattoos may occur due to the pigment compounds used, such as oxides of iron, mercury, chromium, cadmium, and cobalt and synthetic organic dyes. Symptoms of an allergic reaction include swelling, redness and severe itching.

Most infections from piercing are due to the use of non-sterile techniques. The skin pathogens streptococcus and staphylococcus are most frequently involved in skin infections from piercing. The fleshy tissue around the pierced area may weaken and tear, leading for example, to a badly disfigured earlobe. Other common complications include contact dermatitis and scars. Piercing can result in endocarditis, urethral rupture, and a serious infection of the penis foreskin leading to severe disability or even death.

Treatment

Treatment of a local infection from piercing includes warm compresses and antibacterial ointment for local infections, to a five-day course of oral antibiotic therapy. If hepatitis B or C is confirmed, then a series of diet and lifestyle changes, such as the elimination of alcohol, is recommended to control the disease.

There are four methods to remove tattoos, including: surgical removal that involves cutting the tattoo away; sanding the skin with a wire brush to remove the epidermis and dermis layers in a process called dermabrasion; using a salt solution to soak the tattooed skin (salabrasion); and scarification, removing the tattoo with an acid solution to form a scar in its place.

Prognosis

Depending on the type of infection resulting from either piercing or tattoos, the treatment and prognosis vary. Minor infections respond well to antibiotic therapy, while blood borne diseases such as hepatitis B and C cause life-altering results. Disfigurement may or may not be fully correctable by later plastic surgery.

Prevention

The best way to prevent infection from piercing or tattoos is not to get one in the first place. Procedures should be performed in a sterile environment by an experienced professional. An autoclave (a heat machine regulated by the Food and Drug Administration) should be available on the premises to clean needles and tubes after each customer, and people performing the procedure should wear latex gloves when applying the tattoo.

Piercing should be completed with smoothly polished jewelry made of 14 or 18 carat gold, titanium, surgical steel or niobium. An allergic reaction can result with the use of jewelry made of brass plate or containing a nickel alloy. Healing time from a piercing range from six months to two years. A piercing should be completed in a sterile environment that uses every precaution to reduce the risk of infection. Excessive force, such as exerting a strong pull, should never be applied to jewelry inserted into pierced body parts to avoid tearing and injuring the tissues.