GENERAL INFO
When you undergo medical or dental examinations, treatments, or procedures, you may be asked to remove your body jewelry. However, many piercings (even old ones) shrink or close very quickly and it could be difficult or impossible for you to put jewelry back in once it has been removed. Human bodies vary greatly and nobody can say how long you could leave out jewelry and still reinsert it later. So if your regular jewelry must be taken out, the best course of action is to keep a retainer in the channel at all times to prevent any problems.
That said, it is not always medically necessary to change or remove your jewelry. Your piercer may be able to supply recommendations for piercing-friendly medical or dental caregivers, or help you to educate your own healthcare professional to minimize this issue.
- Discuss your piercing with your healthcare provider prior to scheduling an appointment in which the presence of your jewelry may be an issue.
- Inquire about the feasibility of wearing a nonmetallic replacement when you are asked to remove metal from your body.
- Obtain a retainer before your appointment and if possible get your doctor to approve it so there will be no surprises when you go in for your procedure.
- Arrange with your piercer for an insertion before your appointment if you will require help.
- If you cannot get a retainer in advance, ask your dentist for a sterile floss threader, or a doctor or nurse in the medical office or hospital for a sterile IV catheter or microbore IV tubing.
RADIOLOGY/IMAGING
Studies have shown that removing piercing jewelry is generally not necessary for X-rays, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and many other procedures, unless the piercing is directly in the area of examination or treatment1. If you wear metal jewelry, it will be visible on the test results, of course, but this is only a problem when the ornament obscures the area of concern.
MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING (MRI)
Most high-quality metal body jewelry is non-ferromagnetic (nonmagnetic), so it will not react to the MRI equipment. Beware, however, that cheap body jewelry may indeed be a very dangerous problem when getting an MRI. The jewelry can be tested with a strong hand-held magnet prior to entering the MRI suite to determine if it is magnetic or not, and a “scout scan” can be performed by the MRI technician to determine the amount of blurring or artifact from the jewelry.
COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (CAT OR CT) SCAN
These do become blurred if metal is present, so all metal jewelry in the region of the examination does need to be removed for this type of analysis.
WHAT IS NORMAL?
Initially: some bleeding, localized swelling, tenderness, or bruising.
During healing: some discoloration, itching, secretion of a whitish-yellow fluid (not pus) that will form some crust on the jewelry. The tissue may tighten around the jewelry as it heals.
Once healed: the jewelry may not move freely in the piercing; do not force it. If you fail to include cleaning your piercing as part of your daily hygiene routine, normal but smelly bodily secretions may accumulate.
A piercing may seem healed before the healing process is complete. This is because tissue heals from the outside in, and although it feels fine, the interior remains fragile. Be patient, and keep cleaning throughout the entire healing period.
Even healed piercings can shrink or close in minutes after having been there for years! This varies from person to person; if you like your piercing, keep jewelry in—do not leave it empty.
SURFACE ANCHORS
Below is a section you can share with your healthcare professional if necessary:
Dear Healthcare Professional;
Your patient has a type of piercing called a “surface anchor.” This is a style of piercing where there is no “front” and “back” to the jewelry; rather, half of the jewelry is seated entirely under the skin.
The jewelry is inserted by piercing the tissue with a standard piercing needle, and manipulating the base of the jewelry into the puncture that has been made. The skin then heals around it and holds the base in place. The exterior portion of the jewelry should sit flush against the surface of the skin.
Because of this, the base of the surface anchor cannot easily be taken in and out like other common styles of body jewelry. It stays in place until the wearer chooses to have it removed by a piercer. At that point, the jewelry may be massaged out; or, a piercing needle may be used again to make a small puncture in the skin against the post of the jewelry. This allows the opening in the tissue to be enlarged just enough to pull the base out. The puncture made to insert or remove the jewelry is on average 2mm in diameter–as small as most common body piercings (or smaller), and no deeper.
This means that surface anchors can be removed only once, and seldom can be reinserted after being taken out. They are made from implant grade materials and are designed to be entirely safe for permanent wear in the body, much like a medical implant.
Therefore, removal of this jewelry is not only impractical, but unnecessary for most medical tests and procedures. They will react the same way any medical implant would in radiological examinations such as X-rays, MRIs, CT scans, and surgical procedures.
For more information contact the Association of Professional Piercers, at info@safepiercing.org, or call toll-free (888) 888-1APP or visit www. safepiercing.org.
