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Body art and the great debate
Even major television networks like The Learning Channel (TLC) have jumped onto the body-art-bandwagon with Miami Ink, a series that follows the lives of several tattoo artists and their quirky clientele. "Tattoos and piercings are more common today than ever before," says George T. Nahass, M.D., a board certified dermatologist and dermatopathologist at Skin Care Center of Southern Illinois, in Mt. Vernon, and Centralia. "As more athletes, musical performers, and other prominent cultural figures display tattoos, so, too, does the public." Often seen as signs of beauty, the practice of body art dates back almost 5,300 years and was a fascinating part of many cultural rituals, Nahass says. Frowning on body art
"People are judged by their appearance, regardless of whether they have tattoos and piercings," says Nicole Proctor a senior at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and a native of Woodstock. "I love my tattoos and have not regretted them for a single instant. I feel that tattoos have the ability to allow an individual to express their own personality; a well thought out tattoo can be beautiful and meaningful," Proctor says. Although in the perfect world we would all love to be judged by our merit and skill alone, the fact remains that tattoos, piercings, and other forms of body art do affect the ways we are perceived by others, both professionally and socially. Although Proctor may see no shame in this type of personal expression, other older professionals, like Vickie Devenport from Quincy, talk about how something as simple as a tattoo can compromise one's professional integrity. "I do believe that some forms of body art have negative stigmas attached to them, especially from the perspective of older generations," Devenport says. "Slowly though it seems as if that stigma has changed somewhat with the increasing appearance of tattoos among a large number of people of various ages," she adds. Devenport who works as an outreach coordinator for Southern Illinois Radio Information Service, agrees that most people associate tattoos with a rebellious attitude which could in turn affect one's chances of obtaining a new position or job opportunity. "I think that a visible tattoo may create an adverse reaction from some people who simply think they are unattractive, especially in the business world," she says. Understanding body art When most people think of body art the first thing they often think of are tattoos, but body art comes in many other forms. The American Academy of Dermatology reports that there are primarily four different types of tattoos: • Traumatic tattoos which are caused by the unwanted embedding of dirt or debris beneath the skin after a bicycle or motorcycle accident for instance • Cosmetic tattoos which are used as permanent make-up • Medical tattoos • Amateur / professional tattoos "You can think of a professional tattoo as a controlled abrasion on the skin." explains Darren Ashbaugh, a seasoned tattoo artist of 16 years. Ashbaugh currently works for Karma Tattoos & Piercings, formerly known as Golgotha Tattoos in Carbondale. "Basically, we end up putting thousands of tiny holes into the skin. With each prick colored pigment is deposited under the skin to make a lasting design." Nahass warns that impetigo, a staph infection, or cellulites, a more severe and deeper skin infection, may develop after tattooing. He reminds us that universal precautions should be used by tattoo studios. "Look for inspection certificates to be certain. Also, some people have allergic reactions to the tattoo ink. If you already have a skin condition, you may have flare-ups as a result of a tattoo," Nahass adds. In addition to tattoos, piercings are another popular form of body art. According to Nahass, during body piercing, jewelry is inserted after the tissue from the designated site is punctured with a hollow needle. "The most common complication with piercings is the development of keloids and infections," Nahass warns. Often referred to as scars that just don't know when to stop, keloids are tough, irregularly shaped scars that progressively enlarge - the result of an overgrowth of dense fibrous tissue that usually develops after the healing of a skin injury. "Treatment of keloids can be difficult, requiring surgery, and/or injections of steroids or interferon, topical creams, cryosurgery (liquid nitrogen), and combination therapy for their removal," Nahass adds. In order to keep your piercings free from infection, Karma Tattoos and Piercings' Scott Randolph, a body piercing professional of eight years, suggests simply keeping the piercing clean. He recommends using anti-bacterial soap a couple times a day to keep the area free from germs. "You can also make a saline solution with non-iodized sea salt to cleanse the area," Randolph says. "Definitely stay away from petroleum based ointments as they can trap dirt and prevent the piercing from healing." Another popular, and more extreme, form of body art is skin stretching. This is most often done on the ear lobes and just under the nose. Essentially, a large cone shaped piece of jewelry, similar to a miniature railroad spike, is inserted into a piercing hole. Using a device called a taper; the cone shaped jewelry is pushed further into the hole, gradually increasing the size and width of the original piercing. "If given the proper healing time between the stretches, scar tissue will be at a minimum, so the elasticity of the skin will allow it to return to normal," Randolph says. "If it is an exceptionally large stretch or a lot of damage was done to the piercing the results will vary. I have heard of medical intervention to repair tears and rips, but it is usually associated with rather large stretches," he adds. Although body art is trendy, it comes with its own risks. Nahass warns that complications include infection and the risk of blood borne diseases such as Hepatitis. These risks dramatically increase among amateur piercers who do not clean equipment properly. Nahass also warns that embedding of jewelry (where the skin grows over the jewelry) may occur, and hypersensitivity or allergies to the nickel in some jewelry can cause the development of an adverse skin reaction. ___________ Tattoo removal options and concerns With age comes wisdom and what many young professionals are finding out as they enter the corporate world is that they may, in fact, have to leave their body art behind as they progress in their careers. As the younger generations prepare to enter the workforce, will we expect to see a stream of young professionals in long sleeved shirts and extra long skirts to cover unsightly tattoos? Not if they check out the latest advances in laser tattoo removal. The American Academy of Dermatologists (AAD) reports that new progress with laser technology has enabled doctors to remove tattoos by targeting the pigment in the dermis (or inner layer of the skin) and vaporizing the pigment colors with high-intensity light beams. There are several different type of lasers used to remove tattoos depending on the pigment colors. The inks that respond best to laser treatment are black, dark blue, red, some lighter blues and green. Lavender, yellow and orange hues are harder to remove. The AAD also reports that the best candidate for laser tattoo removal is someone with a fair complexion with a black tattoo. In addition to laser removal there are several other options available to help you rid yourself of your permanent body art. Salibrasion is a removal technique that uses abrasion to literally rub off the tattoo. This procedure, which uses salt as an abrasive tool, is probably one of the oldest resurfacing techniques known. This procedure is performed under local anesthetic and can be painful. Excision is another method that unfortunately leaves some scarring but is suitable for smaller tattoos - the results are immediate and the treatment generally inexpensive. In this treatment the tattoo is literally cut out of your skin and the wound sutured. George T. Nahass, MD, a board certified dermatologist and dermatopathologist at Skin Care Center of Southern Illinois notes that although there are many improved methods for the removal of tattoos like laser surgery, excision, salibrasion, and cosmetic over-tattoo, it is still time-consuming, expensive, and may leave scars or discolorations. "The treatment of tattoos with lasers may not entirely remove the pigment or may only bring fair results," he says. "Furthermore, the skin is rarely as perfect as it once was prior to getting a tattoo." ___________ New regulations for Illinois tattoo parlors Corporate America isn't the only group who has noticed the increased popularity of tattoos and piercings among young professionals. Even the Illinois state government is aware of this growing trend. In response to concerns about the overall safety of those undergoing the tattoo/piercing process and also to increase the potential pool of blood donors within the state, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich signed Senate Bill 927 which places tougher restrictions on tattoo and piercing parlors in Illinois. According to Senate Bill 927, tattoo and body piercing facilities must fulfill health and safety requirements, which include an upgrade in sterilization and sanitation techniques in order to receive certification. The new law also requires the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to inspect tattoo and body piercing parlors regularly to ensure that they comply with state standards. Before Senate Bill 927 was signed into law, previous state law mandated any person who received a tattoo from one of the 425 unregulated tattoo/piercing facilities in the state to wait a year before donating blood. Countless persons bearing tattoos have been turned away from blood donation centers across the state and this has caused a dramatic decline in the number of blood donations received this year. Senate Bill 927 went into effect on July 1, 2007 and will require facilities to renew their registration every year. Experts believe that closer regulation of tattooing and body piercing; can only be viewed as a positive and proactive measure to further protect public health - since they carry health risks, including possible exposure to HIV and hepatitis. "I believe that the new legislation is a great idea and will positively affect tattoo parlors and the clients we serve," shares Darren King, manager of Karma Tattoos and Body Piercings in Carbondale. "The new law forces good business practices on establishments who are not taking the initiative to make these changes on their own." "Hygiene is a very important part of tattooing. I feel that if a shop isn't willing to guarantee something as basic as cleanliness to their clients then they definitely need to be shut down," King adds. "Within our business we have been pushing for these changes for years. One of the main reasons we changed locations was so that we could upgrade our facilities to better serve our clients," King says. "At our new location we now have a separate sink for each employee, a separate clean room for sterilization, and we are also employing the use of an Ultrasonic Cleaning System. This system uses a solution of PreZyme, a cleaning agent that dissolves organic debris, to fully ensure that we are creating a clean and safe environment for anyone who receives our services." King believes that the new law shouldn't be the only motivating force to get tattoo parlors up to code. He sees it as something the industry should be doing anyways, if they care about their clients. "At our shop we have even gone so far as to install lighter colored tiles on our floor," he says. "Although these changes were not required by law, we thought that this simple change would enable us to better see dirt and debris that would ordinarily be hidden on a darker floor. Simple changes like this are essential to keep things as clean as possible. My mother always said, a light floor never lies about being clean," King adds. For more information about Senate Bill 927 visit www.illinois.gov. Comments
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