Chuck Bednar for redOrbit.com – @BednarChuck
An estimated one-fifth of all adults in the US now as at least one tattoo, but getting body art may come with long-term medical risks, researchers from the New York University Langone Medical Center report in a new study published Wednesday in the journal Contact Dermatitis.
Senior investigator and NYU Langone dermatologist Dr. Marie Leger and her colleagues polled 300 adults in New York’s Central Park in June 2013 and found that as many as six percent of the individuals who had at least one tattoo had experienced some type of issue such as swelling, rash, or severe itching that lasted longer than four months and even up to several years.
In a statement, Dr. Leger said that she and her colleagues were “rather alarmed” at their findings, and while she said that some of these adverse reactions could be treated with anti-inflammatory steroids, others could require laser surgery. The most severe issues could result in the formation of scar tissue or skin lesions, and even require the removal of the tattooed area of the skin.
Authors call for more research on body art
The NYU Langone study found that up to 10 percent of people who receive tattoos experience short-term complications such as pain, swelling, infection, and delayed healing, and just one-third of those individuals went on to seek medical attention or treatment for those issues.
Long-term complications were most common in regions that were tattooed with the colors red or black, Dr. Leger explained. Forty-four percent of chronic reactions were to red ink while 36 percent were associated to black ink. Black ink was far more common than red ink in tattoos, with 90 percent containing black ink and just 36 percent containing red.
Dr. Leger said that the lack of regulatory oversight in the tattoo industry, as well as the lack of uniform standards amongst dye manufacturers and the poor understanding of the chemical composition of the colored inks used in the process may play a role in these findings.
So should people who have tattoos or are planning to get them be concerned?
“I definitely think it’s something to think about,” she told redOrbit via email. “I think one of the important findings of our study is that six percent of people we talked to had longstanding, chronic complaints about their tattoo that could persist for months to years. Considering how common tattoos are these days, we don’t know enough about them. More research is needed.”
Dermatologists can help treat tattoo-related complications and reactions, Dr. Leger continued. She added that she would advise those with chronic skin conditions such as psoriasis or eczema to consult a doctor before getting a tattoo, and that people with tattoos should make sure that they are protected from the sun, as exposure to sunlight can be a trigger for adverse reactions.
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