Oral Piercing - Know the Risks
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. -- Piercing, like tattooing, is just one of today's popular forms of "body art" and self expression.
Piercing may seem cool, daring and totally safe because some celebrities use piercing to flaunt their particular style or attitude. But piercing the tongue, lips, cheeks or uvula (the tissue that hangs at the back of your throat) is not as safe as some would have you believe. That's because the mouth's moist, dark environment is home to large amounts of bacteria making it an ideal place for infection.
An oral piercing can interfere with speech, chewing and swallowing. That may seem like a mere inconvenience until you consider that it may also cause:
- Infection, pain and swelling
- Chipped or cracked teeth
- Injuries to the gums
- Damage to fillings
- Increased saliva flow
- Hypersensitivity and allergies to metals
- Scar tissue
- Nerve damage
These harmful effects can happen during the piercing, soon after, or even long after the procedure.
An infection can quickly become life threatening if it's not treated promptly. For example, bacteria can enter the blood stream through piercing sites in the mouth and travel to the heart causing inflammation of the valves and tissues, a condition called infective endocarditis. This is an added risk for people with certain heart conditions. This inflammation can cause permanent scar tissue to form, thus preventing ideal blood flow through the heart. Treatment for infective endocarditis can range from a four week hospital stay with intravenous antibiotics to open heart surgery for valve replacement.
After piercing, the tongue may swell. There have been reports of swelling serious enough to block the airway. And it's very possible to sever, or irreversibly damage, a nerve during tongue piercing. If this happens, you could experience a numb tongue, leading to problems such as repeatedly biting your tongue and difficulty with speech. A loss of the sense of taste and constant pain or tingling in the tongue can also occur with nerve damage. Damage to surprisingly large blood vessels under the tongue could subsequently result in large amounts of blood loss leading to a life-threatening condition.
As if all of that isn't enough, piercing jewelry can sometimes cause allergic responses at the pierced site. Along with this, one of the more common problems associated with tongue studs, is broken and cracked teeth. Since this is a completely preventable injury, it is regrettable that several of these teeth often require root canals and crowns to restore them.
The moral of the story you ask? Weigh the risks and benefits carefully. And if you insist on doing this, be sure the piercing is performed by a licensed technician. Piercing will add responsibility to your life, requiring constant upkeep and attention.
Courtesy of the American Dental Association and 55th Dental Squadron