Infections linked to Ear Piercing

Just when you thought it was a safe beauty option, ear-piercing has come under siege as a result of a recent study showing that ear-piercing is linked to bacterial infection. We don’t mean old-time high school piercing by your best friend with a sterilized needle and some thread, which is an obvious no-no. We’re talking about piercing performed in malls using hand-powered piercing guns.

The study, carried out at the Department of Emergency Medicine at UCLA-Harbor, involved surveying 14 businesses that pierce ears on a regular basis. Evaluated were the type of instrument and earrings used (ie, platinum vs gold vs silver posts), the level of employee training, the location of the piercing and prep and aftercare of the ears. Both tattoo parlors that performed piercings and mall-type stores and kiosks were part of the 14 businesses studied.

The tattoo parlors, in general, used sterile needles and forceps to pierce ears, while the retail stores and kiosks used piercing guns. All 14 businesses offered earrings made of 14 or 24K gold, stainless steel or other metals, and none offered earrings made with nickel (to which many people are allergic). Although the training involved videos and demos of piercing at the stores and kiosks, the tattoo parlors insisted on an apprenticeship type program of varying lengths. Both business types performed by lobe and cartilage piercings.

Here was the big difference: all the cosmetic stores and kiosks used benzalkonium chloride or isopropyl alcohol as ear preparation agents, while the tattoo parlors used iodine-based solutions. At all of the businesses, minimal aftercare instructions were given and those instructions typically focused on maintaining ear-hole patency as opposed to avoiding infection.

The study went on to show that the cosmetic shops and earring kiosks patients were more likely to have infections, particularly in the cartilage piercings. The belief is that the increased infections were a result of poor training and the use of benzalkonium chloride as a preparation agent. Some of these infections can be very severe, requiring surgery and IV antibiotics to treat a nasty bacterium called Pseudomonas.

It’s to your benefit to think about taking a bit more precautions when having someone pierce your body. Ask what kind of preparations they use on the ears or other body part prior to piercing, and make sure your tech is thoroughly trained.