Danger Alert: 6 Ways Nose Piercings Can Put Your Health At Risk

People with nose piercings look great. However, the practice of piercing your nose isn’t entirely safe and healthy. There are a lot of things that can go wrong such as a keloid lump growing on the nose, or you may end up swallowing the golden pin when it loosens and drops in your gullet.

The cost to get a nose piercing, as quoted by CostFreak, is around $25 to $90, which may seem affordable. But the cost of fixing a piercing that has gone wrong may be more and may be life-threatening. On that note, here are the 6 top dangers associated with the nose piercing.

Infection

Piercing your nose can lead to a serious infection that can develop into other complications. An infection occurs when the materials used in piercing are not sterilized. They may hold disease-causing microorganisms. Some of the microorganisms that can be introduced into the body through unsafe nose piercing include Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. They freely exist in the environment and settle on surfaces of things.

It is important to ensure that the person piercing your nose observes safety measures by sterilizing the items. Thereafter, you should ensure that the jewelry themselves are free from microorganisms that can pose risk to your health.

Problem with the jewelry

There is a lot that can go wrong with the jewelry themselves. The jewelry may loosen when you are involved in strenuous activities and fall in the nostril. You may accidentally swallow it in the process of putting the stud in place or experience breathing difficulties when it gets stuck in the windpipe.

When a jewelry is pierced wrongly, and it entangles in the nose, you will have to remove it before causing health problems. If the sharp-ended pins are swallowed, it may require an excoriating surgery. If it’s not removed, it can be fatal.

Rejection

The tissue in your nose may completely reject the jewelry and begin pushing it out. This is normally the case when the jewelry is placed wrongly. The stud may be bigger in size than the nose tissue could handle, or in other cases, the coating of jewelry may be off-putting.

There are also instances when the skin is allergic to the metal or to a certain material used to make the jewelry. In this case, the swellings will develop around the piercing and result to the formation of pus. That would not be a beautiful sight. To prevent this from happening, consider assessing yourself about your body’s compatibility with the stud’s material you want to wear.

Nerve damage and scar tissue

Unless the jewelry is placed by a professional, it is really easy to damage the delicate nerves in the nose while trying to add a piercing. The art of piercing can’t be done by just any person; it should be administered by an experienced individual. When the piercing has gone bad, it will result in a damaged nerve, causing the nose to lose sensitivity. The whole point is: let a piercing professional do the piercing.

Necrosis of the nasal wall

Necrosis is the condition whereby the tissue in your nose can’t stand the presence of a prick inside it. So instead of rejecting it, all the cells surrounding the jewelry begin dying off. Necrosis of the nose tissues often occurs if the piercing process was traumatic. It can also be a result of an allergy – an allergy that isn’t violent enough to result in swelling and itching. Let the piercing process take place smoothly without inducing any form of trauma.

Septal hematoma

Although septal hematoma can be caused by practically any trauma inducing activity acting on your nose, it is usually caused by a badly done piercing. The septum separates the two nostrils, which consist of cartilage, and it doesn’t have its own blood supply.

A piercing that is traumatic enough to injure the septum results in bleeding and collection of blood between the perichondrium and the septum. This requires an expensive treatment to open up blood supply to delicate nasal septum, lest it dies. The symptoms of septal hematoma are swelling, pain, and difficulty in breathing.

In conclusion

Piercing nose rings adds beauty, but the process should not put your health in jeopardy. If you must pierce your nose, then try to follow the safe and healthy way of doing it. But it looks like something you can do without unless it is a cultural requirement.