Complications and Hazards Associated with Body Piercing: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Objectives: The increasingly widespread practice of piercings is often accompanied by complications and hazards which are constantly increasing. Therefore, it seems necessary to pay attention to the non-negligible risks that these practices entail and to the possibilities of reducing them. Hence, this study was conducted to help raise awareness of the complications and hazards associated with body piercing as a growing type of body modification practice.

Methods: Studies were searched in the PubMed database and the Google Scholar engine using the keywords, often in combination, including body piercing, body modification, complications, and infection. The searches were limited to post-2000. Studies without limitations on their types were included in this study.

Results: The most important complications are infection, bleeding, trauma, allergy, and scarring. Infection is the most common complication which occurs in individuals after piercing. A wide spectrum of bacterial and viral infections may occur. Allergic manifestations are not uncommon, with the risk that sensitization thus acquired may have subsequent harmful consequences.

Conclusions: Educating people and health care professionals by conducting more studies to better understand the complications of body piercing can be a solution to reduce health problems related to body piercing.

Keywords: Body piercing; allergy; bleeding; body modification; complications; infection; non-negligible risks; scarring.; trauma.