Body piercing a pain for some
2002-01-08 17:24
Minnesota - Piercings of navels, ears and other parts of the body caused problems from infections to bleeding, for nearly one in five pierced students at a college in New York, school researchers said on Tuesday.
About half last year's student body at Pace University in Pleasantville, New York, had piercings and one quarter had tattoos and doctors there decided to survey students to gauge the medical implications.
Bacterial infection was the most commonly reported problem, followed by bleeding and injury or tearing at the site of the piercing, based on the survey of 454 undergraduates.
Among female students with piercing other than their earlobes, the navel was the most common site, followed by the rest of the ear. For men, the ear was most popular. Male athletes often had tattoos.
Though there were no reported medical complications from the students' tattoos, the report said the bad news may come later when infections with hepatitis B or C or the Aids virus become apparent.
"If our prevalence and complication rates are representative for this age group, these morbid events comprise a considerable demand on and cost to the health care system," study author Dr Lester Mayers of Pace University's Division of Sports Medicine wrote in the January issue of the journal, Mayo Clinic Proceedings.