Titanium. Piercing jewelry of titanium for medical implants and its varieties (Blackline™ and Zircon Gold™) is considered to be the best for any type of piercing.

PTFE. Poly-tetra-fluora-ethylaene (teflon) is the most hypoallergic material for piercing and implantation. Teflon is free of components which release harmful or allergic components into the blood and lymph. Considering teflon to be very flexible it is recommended to be used at problem operations and inflammatory processes, as well as for pregnant women with navel piercing, because the jewelry shapes according to the changing part of the body.
Gold. There is jewelry of 14 karat (standard 585) gold and of 18 karat (standard 750) gold. The standard shows what part of gold and alloy falls on 1000 parts of mass. For example, standard 750 gold contains 75% gold and 25% alloy. As for standard 585 gold, it is much more terrible and dangerous. Such jewelry contains only 58.5% gold and 41.5% alloy (copper, nickel etc. – almost a half!!!) and may cause allergic reaction. So standard 585 gold jewelry is not recommended for initial piercing.

Surgical steel. In Europe and USA surgical steel is prohibited for initial piercing, because, according to Europe Nickel Directive, “concentration of nickel alloy more than 0.05% (500 parts on million) is not allowed for materials, which contact with human blood and lymph”. Concentration of nickel alloy is 0.10-0.25% in surgical steel 316L/LVM used for piercing jewelry.
Silver is used in additional accessories, caps and chains. Silver jewelry is categorically prohibited for initial piercing, because silver oxidizes in touch with human blood and lymph as well as other agents used for aftercare. Generated oxid hinders healing and discolor the area around the piercing.

What jewelry is appropriate for type of my piercing?

There are two types of piercing: initial and healed. For initial piercing jewelry of titanium, high karat gold, teflon, plastic or niobium is used, and initial jewelry has some bigger size than jewelry for healed piercing to promote healing. The best variant of jewelry choice is to address the piercer who will choose the jewelry according to your anatomy or will advise the size needed. As for healed piercing, jewelry of surgical steel 316L/LVM may be already used.

When is the jewelry allowed to change?

Fundamental: the jewelry is allowed to be changed only after full healing, not when your piercing doesn’t bother you and looks like a million dollars! Remember that healing takes various periods of time for individual. So we list approximate time for healing at proper aftercare. In spite of this, we recommend you always treat healed piercing as initial.
Facial piercing: 1-2 weeks;
Nipples: 3-6 weeks;
Navel piercing: 1-6 months;
Prince Albert: 1-2 months;
Vertical clitoris piercing: 1-2 months;
Horizontal clitoris piercing: 2-3 months;
Labia: 2-3 weeks.
Healing time of piercing depends only on you and carefulness of aftercare. Unfortunately, a cosmetician has never given correct aftercare guidelines yet.

How quickly will the piercing heal if the jewelry is removed?

Have you removed the jewelry? As a rule, without full forming of fistula, you will not be able to insert the jewelry already in 24 hours, but the tunnel will skin over only in a month. If you remove the jewelry after full forming of fistula, then in some cases (ear lobes), skinning over may be not full. But if the piercing is in constant “moving” (near facial muscular fascicles – brow), or in constant tension (navel or tongue), then, as a rule, full skinning over the piercing may be completed already in 1-2 months. But all the said is not 100% warranty of the intended effect!

How soon is it allowed to make a new piercing after removing of the jewelry?

To make the piercing again in the same place as previous piercing is allowed only after the operation at once (repiercing), or in case of full skinning over of previous piercing and absence of keloid formations. In exceptional cases, when the navel was pierced with violations (not enough skin was taken) and the skin push out the jewelry, the piercer can allow the repiercing only after individual assessment.

Description of the procedure and choice of the studio

About what should I ask the piercer?

When you come to the piercer, you must necessarily know about all nuances of executed procedure. The real professional should be proud of his knowledge and is always glad to explain the key insights of his work for the client.
· How long has your piercer been piercing?
· How and how long did he learn to pierce? And can you look at his certificate to operate?
· Has the piercer his piercing photo portfolio?
· How are tools and equipment sterilized? What type of needles is used?
· With what types of jewelry does the piercer work? Has this jewelry the certificate of producer?
· Of what material is the chosen jewelry? And why is it the most appropriate for initial piercing?
Professional piercer will answer all this questions easily and will advise you on any of them with pleasure. Don’t be afraid of asking the piercer. Your health depends on it. It doesn’t worry you indeed?

Your rights and duties

Any person being pierced has the right:
· to demand thorough hygiene of the room and the piercer himself;
· to feel the friendly and calm atmosphere; the piercer must be professional one, who may tell about his work and experience with due attention and professionalism:
· to be sure the piercer to have intimate knowledge of hygiene and sterilization and be the specialist of top-flight:
· to demand the piercer use only single-use needle that is immediately disposed after use on one piercing;
· to demand the piercer use only sterilized tools;
· to know that piercing guns are NEVER appropriate, and are often dangerous when used on anything – including earlobes.;
· to have initial piercings fitted with jewelry of appropriate size, material, design, and construction to best promote healing;
· to be fully informed about proper aftercare, and to have continuing access to the piercer for assistance throughout the healing process.

Healing problems

When is the piercing not recommended or not allowed?

There are several restrictions on piercing. We caution you against attendance of studios, for those it is acceptable to perform piercing in violation with our recommendations or without permission of your parents (under 18 years of age). For certain, the studio has accepted for employment a young unqualified piercer or is in difficulties, so it is good-for-anything to earn to the prejudice of your health. It is not acceptable for piercer to perform piercing in the following cases:
- any piercing of a minor without a parent or legal guardian be present;
- recrudescence of any chronic disease (in this case it is better to consult with your doctor before going to the studio);
- temperature:
- coagulation failure;
- Allergic reaction to the metal of jewelry or to the medications of lidocaine group (in case of anesthesia);
- alcohol/drug intoxication.

Risks associated with body piercing (material, aftercare, etc.)

Possible risks: in first 1-2 days – redness, lymphatic discharge.
Impossible risks (at upholding of all restrictions): all the following.
Warranted risks (allergic reaction to the metal, surgical steel, incorrect aftercare, drinking alcohol and smoking): skin pigmentation, impossibility of healing, permanent inflammation, scar and keloid formations.
Fatal risks (using of piercing gun, self piercing): infection from hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV, blood poisoning, continuous inflammatory process, chronic keloid formation.

Help! I have a problem! (inflammation, discharge, rejection, keloid etc.)

Attention: your problem has arisen only due to yourself! First you ought to read the section “Risks associated with body piercing”. You have disregarded all abovementioned, but we try to help you.
- allergic reaction to the metal (permanent redness, pigmentation, swelling): change the jewelry by one of PTTE, otherwise skin over the piercing;
- traumatizing: apply a myramistin compress twice a day and do not wash out more often than 3 times a day (body piercing); rinse 5 times a day (oral piercing) and after every food intake, and keep to a diet;
- keloid formation: change to an appropriate jewelry or let the hole close up; consult with piercer or doctor for more correct recommendations;
- inflammation: act the same way as at traumatizing;
- blood poisoning (fever, retching, giddiness, purulent discharge): 911 (it is no joke!!!), immidiately flush the affected area with antiseptic, make a penicillin block;

Piercing aftercare at sea

If you had not time to being pierced in advance and healing it before your vacation and if you failed to delay it, then follow our recommendations for aftercare in extreme cases:
- take along Band Aid, levomecol (or any other antiseptic ointment equivalent) and two vials of chlorhexidine;
- every time before swimming/activity apply 2 g of ointment on the piercing;
- every time after swimming/activity apply a chlorhexidine compress for 3-5 minutes on the piercing;
- necessarily close the piercing from sunlight! Ultraviolet burns new skin tissue that leads to impossibility of healing;
- get morally ready to problems: keloid formations, inflammable process;
- get ready to remove the jewelry and let the hole close up during the vacation already.
Remember that your organism is individual, and friend’s phrase: “At sea my piercing had been healing even better, just for two days”, should not be accepted for a fact. This exception to the rule only confirms the great (97%) possibility of trouble with your piercing under conditions where possibility of infection is 100 times greater.;)

Bad advises for too smart ones

Is this section for you? We are glad to help you! So, if you want to:
- get metal allergy, kill your immune system, then you should use low-quality steel jewelry;
- get scars and keloid formations, then you should be pierced with piercing gun;
- get infection from hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV, then you should be pierced with tools which cannot be autoclave sterilized (piercing guns), reusable needles, unsterilized tools;
- get cancroid, pigmentation, inflammation, then you should smoke during healing of lip piercing or tongue piercing;
- get rejection, inflammation, infection, then you should perform the piercing by yourself, at home, or by some nodding acquaintance piercer;
- get rows and quarrels with your parents, then you should have the piercing without their permission unless you are 18 years old;
- get all abovementioned, then you should experiment, perform the piercing by yourself;
- ... the list is continuously widened;)

Interesting questions

Why are piercing guns prohibited?

Only sterile or sterile/disposable equipment is suitable for body piercing; and that only materials which are certified as safe for internal implant should be placed in inside a fresh or unhealed piercing. We consider unsafe any procedure that places vulnerable tissue in contact with either non-sterile equipment or jewelry that is not considered medically safe for long-term internal wear. Such procedures place the health of recipients at an unacceptable risk. For this reason, the Association of Professional piercers must strongly recommend that reusable ear piercing guns not be used for any type of piercing procedure.
Besides piercing guns is impossible to be autoclave sterilized, studs jewelry leads to tissue damage, keloid formation and rejection. Moreover, such jewelry contains nickel and aluminum alloy 10-100 times as much as Europe Nickel Directive allows.

Reusable ear piercing guns can put clients in direct contact with the blood and body fluids of previous clients that leads to hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV transmission.

Plastic ear piercing guns cannot be autoclave or chemically sterilized (they will melt). And simply wiping the external surfaces of the gun with isopropyl alcohol or other antiseptics does not kill pathogens. Blood from one client can aerosolize, becoming airborne in microscopic particles, and contaminate the inside of the gun. As is now well known, the Hepatitis virus can live for extended periods of time on inanimate surfaces for 300 hours (two weeks) or more. Considering the dozens of clients whose initial piercings may have direct contact with a single gun in one day, this is a cause for serious concern. Parents, who are sure of infallibility of piercing guns, expose their children with immature immune systems to higher risk for hepatitis B/C infection.

Piercing guns can cause significant tissue damage
Ear piercing studs have the effect on the body more like a crush injury than a piercing. Studs are made of soft metal, and it is impossible to sharp them such as special piercing needle (triple laser sharpening). Such operations result in locking over the internal tissue from the hole that leads to scars and keloid formation.

The length and design of gun studs is inappropriate for healing piercings
Ear piercing studs close the hole from both sides that leads to impossibility of correct aftercare. Due to their extra-tight clasp the jewelry hinders normal state of tissue that leads to serious irritating and skinning over the jewelry. Most ear piercing studs have no certificate of conformance. Even when coated in non-toxic gold plating, materials from underlying alloys can leach into human tissue through corrosion, scratches and surface defects, causing dermatologic problems, rejection and allergic reaction, because such coat is extremely slight. Remember, only implant grade (ASTM F-138) steel, titanium and high-karat gold (14-18 karat) are appropriate for piercing stud composition.

How can ear lobe piercing effect on health?

There is more than 150 special points, influencing them activates the work of all the organs. These acupuncture points are scattered irregularly all along internal and external surfaces of auricle. So the zones are formed which correspond to systems of function (eyesight, digestive system, respiratory apparatus etc.). Acting upon these points may activate the work of these systems. Contrary to common opinion, ear lobe pearcing in the point corresponding with eyesight not make it worse, even help preserving it.
Piercing of such points liquidates the acupuncture point, so it becomes impossible to control particular organs of human body. Consequently, the negative effect of ear lobe piercing on eyesight is nonsense.

Why is it not allowed to turn/move the jewelry during healing?

The lymph sets solid on the barbell itself inside the fistula. When you turn the jewelry, you hurt new tender tissue, and the healing begins anew, so is inflammable process!