From ears to nipples and everywhere in between, people choose to have piercings for a variety of reasons. However, piercings can leave you with a scar if you decide not to wear them anymore. Let’s go over the types of piercings and how to prevent scarring.
Types of Piercings
There are many types of body piercings out there, such as:
- Earlobe Piercing
- Conch Piercing
- Auricle Piercing
- Helix or Top Ear Piercing
- Tragus Piercing
- Eyebrow Piercings
- Nose Piercings
- Lip Piercings
- Tongue Piercings
- Belly Button Piercing
- Nipple Piercing
- Genital Piercing
- Surface Piercing
Scars
All scars result from fibrous tissue that replace normal tissue after a piercing, injury or surgery. There are three main types of scars that tend to develop around new or retired piercings: hypertrophic scars, keloid scars and atrophic scars.
Hypertrophic and keloid scars result from excessive collagen growth that extends beyond the normal, healthy tissue that surrounds them. Atrophic scars are sunken, comprised of collagen growth that leaves behind an indentation rather than a raised bump.
Sometimes, you don’t actually have a scar due to a piercing. It’s more like an irritation. Scars are more likely to develop within four to eight weeks of getting a piercing. If a bump or other irritation forms before that, you probably only have a temporary irritation. On top of that, you could also be contending with a metal allergy or infection.
Infection
If you start treating scars too soon after piercing and develop infections, discontinue treatment. You may see red streaks that radiate outward from your piercing, or the area of skin may be hot to the touch, or perhaps you have a discharge of thick, yellowish pus.
Really delve into your aftercare regime until any infection clears. Speaking to your dermatologist or doctor is also a good idea if symptoms don’t go away. You may need an antibiotic. It may be best to leave the piercing in while the infection clears, as you don’t want it to close up and trap the infection. If you keep the jewelry in, the piercing will be better able to drain.
Do all you can to ensure your piercing heals well and you will have minimal scarring. When a wound stays open too long, it has a greater risk of scarring.
Keep all new piercings as clean as possible with gentle cleansers like saline wash/sea salt solutions. Once healthy tissue growth has formed, you are less likely to develop an atrophic scar later if you ever decide to remove the piercing.
The best way to prevent a scar from forming or worsening is to use a topical gel designed specifically for piercing scars. We recommend Scarfade, clinically proven to work when used as directed. Apply twice a day and see results in no time!