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Because it requires breaking the skin barrier, tattooing may carry health risks, including infection and allergic reactions. In the United States, for example, a person who receives a tattoo will generally be prohibited from donating blood for 12 months (FDA 2000), unless the procedure was done in a state-regulated and licensed studio, using sterile technique (Red Cross,2006). Most studios that are eligible can provide vouchers.
Modern western tattooers reduce such risks by following universal precautions, working with single-use items, and sterilizing their equipment after each use. Many jurisdictions require that tattooists have bloodborne pathogen training, such as is provided through the Red Cross and OSHA.
Infection
Since tattoo instruments come in contact with blood and bodily fluids, diseases may be transmitted if the instruments are used on more than one person without being sterilized. However, infection from tattooing in clean and modern tattoo studios employing single-use needles is rare. In amateur tattoos, such as those applied in prisons, however, there is an elevated risk of infection. To address this problem, a program was introduced in Canada as of the summer of 2005 that provides legal tattooing in prisons, both to reduce health risks and to provide inmates with a marketable skill. Inmates were to be trained to staff and operate the tattoo parlors once six of them open successfully.
Infections that could be transmitted via the use of unsterilized tattoo equipment include surface infections of the skin, herpes simplex virus, tetanus, staph, fungal infections, some forms of hepatitis, and HIV. No person in the United States is reported to have contracted HIV via a commercially-applied tattooing process. Washington state's OSHA studies have suggested that since the needles used in tattooing are not hollow, in the case of a needle stick injury the amount of fluids transmitted may be small enough that HIV would be difficult to transmit. Tetanus risk is prevented by having an up-to-date tetanus booster prior to being tattooed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that no data exist in the United States indicating that persons with exposures to tattooing alone are at increased risk for HCV infection. In 2006, the CDC reported 3 clusters with 44 cases of methicillin-resistant staph infection traced to unlicensed tattooists (MMWR 55(24)). One should not consume alcohol directly before or after getting a tattoo. Not only does it weaken the body’s ability to deal with physical stress, alcohol thins the blood, causing more bleeding during the procedure.
Allergic reactions
Allergic reactions to tattoo pigments are uncommon except for certain brands of red and green. People who are sensitive or allergic to certain metals may react to pigments in the skin with swelling and/or itching, and/or oozing of clear fluid called sebum. Such reactions are quite rare, however, and some artists will recommend performing a test patch.
For those who are allergic to latex, many artists are using non-latex or will use non-latex gloves if asked.
There is also a small risk of anaphylactic shock (hypersensitive reaction) in those who are susceptible, but the chance of a health risk is small.
Tattoo Inks
Although the FDA technically requires premarket approval of inks; because of limited resources, it has not actually approved the use of any ink for tattoos. As of 2004 they do perform studies to determine if the contents are possibly dangerous, and follow up with legal action if they find them to have disallowed contents including traces of heavy metals or other carcinogenic materials (see CA lawsuit). The first known study to characterize the composition of these inks was started in 2005 at Northern Arizona University (Finley-Jones and Wagner). The FDA expects local authorities to legislate and test tattoo inks and inks made for the use of permanent cosmetics. In California, the state prohibits certain ingredients and pursues companies who fail to notify the consumer of the contents of tattoo inks. Recently, the state of California sued nine ink manufacturers, requiring them to more adequately label their products.
Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS plastic) ground down to an average diameter of slightly less than 1 micron is used as the colorant in some tattoo inks. The tattoo inks that use ABS result in very vivid tattoos which is the most obvious indicator that the ink contains ABS, as tattoo inks that contain ABS rarely if ever list their ingredients.
There has been concern expressed about the interaction between magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) procedures and tattoo inks, some of which contain trace metals. Allegedly, the magnetic fields produced by MRI machines could interact with these metal particles, potentially causing burns or distortions in the image. The television show MythBusters tested the theory, and found no interaction between tattoo inks and MRI.
However, research by Shellock and Crues reports adverse reactions to MRI and tattoos in a very small number of cases. Wagle and Smith also documented an isolated case of Tattoo-Induced Skin Burn During MR Imaging. The person in the case had a dark, concentrated, loop-shaped tattoo, which the authors speculate could have acted as an RF (radio frequency) pick-up; they also note that this is the first such case they encountered in "thousands of MRI studies". Ratnapalan et al. report another case where an MRI could not be completed due to the patient's extensive tattoos. According to the American Chemical society, home-made tattoos, in which metallic inks have been used in larger quantities, cause these reactions.
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Important notice:
The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other
qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
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