WhitneyHow do I know if my piercing is infected?
March 17th 2009 14:13
When you get a new piercing, you risk the odds of infection, but that doesn't mean that every person and every piercing will lead to an infection. The odds that you will develop an infection depend on your personal immune system and your body's ability to fight infection. It will also depend on the quality of the piercing (IE experience of the piercer and whether the piercing was performed properly) and your ability to properly care for the piercing.
Blood thinners, steroids, diabetes, heart problems, weakened immune system, and other health concerns can make you more susceptible to developing an infection in a new piercing.
Signs of an Infection
* Red and swollen tissue around the piercing
* Painful to touch
* Yellowish, foul-smelling discharge from the piercing
A doctor can properly diagnose the infection, if you see the above signs of an infection developing. You do not want to wait too late, as if you delay treating an infection, you can see a more serious infection develop.
Treating the Infections
As long as the infection is fairly mild, you want to leave the jewelry in because you'll risk closing the infection in your body if you remove the jewelry and the piercing closes. Plus, by leaving the jewelry in, you are ensuring that the piercing gets proper drainage, which will prevent an abscess (collection of puss) from forming.
In most cases, you can treat the infection without losing the piercing.
The doctor may tell you to remove the jewelry if the infection is severe. In this case, do so.
You can treat minor infections with over-the-count antibiotic ointments that you rub on the skin, but in this case you want to make sure that you gently rub off excess ointment so that dust and debris does not stick to the ointment causing further infection.
You can also treat a minor infection with a warm compress and mild sea salt soaks. You want to mix about a half a teaspoon of sea salt with 6 ounces of water. You want the solution to be very mild so that you don't dry out the piercing and cause further irritation to the surrounding tissues. Another method is to use saline solution that you can purchase anywhere contact solution can be purchased; just make sure that the bottle is saline and not a contact cleaner. The saline is pretty much pre-mixed salt water so that you don't have to worry about getting the right concentration.
Prevent an Infection
You can prevent infections from developing in new piercings as long as you properly take care of the piercing. You want to make sure that you clean new piercings at least twice a day but no more than three times a day, using a mild sea salt soak or saline solution. If you're healing a mouth piercing, such as a tongue or lip piercing, you want to use an antibacterial mouth rinse after each meal.
Avoid using antibacterial soaps, and use the LITHA (Leave It The Hell Alone) method of healing. meaning Do Not Touch the piercing or play with the jewelry.
Always make sure that you clean your hands before cleaning your piercing to prevent germs from your hands getting into your healing piercing.
Blood thinners, steroids, diabetes, heart problems, weakened immune system, and other health concerns can make you more susceptible to developing an infection in a new piercing.
Signs of an Infection
* Red and swollen tissue around the piercing
* Painful to touch
* Yellowish, foul-smelling discharge from the piercing
A doctor can properly diagnose the infection, if you see the above signs of an infection developing. You do not want to wait too late, as if you delay treating an infection, you can see a more serious infection develop.
Treating the Infections
As long as the infection is fairly mild, you want to leave the jewelry in because you'll risk closing the infection in your body if you remove the jewelry and the piercing closes. Plus, by leaving the jewelry in, you are ensuring that the piercing gets proper drainage, which will prevent an abscess (collection of puss) from forming.
In most cases, you can treat the infection without losing the piercing.
The doctor may tell you to remove the jewelry if the infection is severe. In this case, do so.
You can treat minor infections with over-the-count antibiotic ointments that you rub on the skin, but in this case you want to make sure that you gently rub off excess ointment so that dust and debris does not stick to the ointment causing further infection.
You can also treat a minor infection with a warm compress and mild sea salt soaks. You want to mix about a half a teaspoon of sea salt with 6 ounces of water. You want the solution to be very mild so that you don't dry out the piercing and cause further irritation to the surrounding tissues. Another method is to use saline solution that you can purchase anywhere contact solution can be purchased; just make sure that the bottle is saline and not a contact cleaner. The saline is pretty much pre-mixed salt water so that you don't have to worry about getting the right concentration.
Prevent an Infection
You can prevent infections from developing in new piercings as long as you properly take care of the piercing. You want to make sure that you clean new piercings at least twice a day but no more than three times a day, using a mild sea salt soak or saline solution. If you're healing a mouth piercing, such as a tongue or lip piercing, you want to use an antibacterial mouth rinse after each meal.
Avoid using antibacterial soaps, and use the LITHA (Leave It The Hell Alone) method of healing. meaning Do Not Touch the piercing or play with the jewelry.
Always make sure that you clean your hands before cleaning your piercing to prevent germs from your hands getting into your healing piercing.
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