Will my nose ring bring me trouble?
I had my nose pierced about a month and a half ago. I was told it would heal in about two weeks. I remove the pin from time to time to clean it with an anti septic liquid like I was instructed to keep germs away. However, every time I remove the pin, I feel a lot of pain. Shouldn’t the pain have gone away by now? It’s really starting to worry me as I have heard of complications that come with piercings. How can I get it to heal properly soon?
Thursday, July 17, 2014
I had my nose pierced about a month and a half ago. I was told it would heal in about two weeks. I remove the pin from time to time to clean it with an anti septic liquid like I was instructed to keep germs away. However, every time I remove the pin, I feel a lot of pain. Shouldn’t the pain have gone away by now? It’s really starting to worry me as I have heard of complications that come with piercings. How can I get it to heal properly soon?
Tracy
Dear Tracy
Pricking the nose and wearing a ring/ stud is a fashion trend all over the world as it adds to the beauty of a woman. The nose, when pricked, will hurt like any other piercing but of course a little bit more. This is so because the nose has a fragile cartilage and septum. The needle pushes through the cartilage usually followed by a piece of jewelry like a stud or nose ring thus rupturing the tissues.
The complications of a nose prick are the same as that of a prick anywhere in the body like an infection including bacterial infections and viral infections like hepatitis B, C or even HIV/AIDS. The trauma caused to soft tissues adds to the pain.
Pain caused depends on several factors, the site of the prick being one. The septum (central part) when pricked is more painful than the nostril (outer part).
A light nose ring or wire when used for pricking causes less pain than a stud. The experience and expertise of the person pricking the nose also matters.
In professional hands it does not last more than 30 seconds. You have not specified whether there was only pain after the prick or that the part of nose is also red and swollen and painful to touch.
After a nose prick, if good aseptic precautions have been used, pain usually does not last more than a day or two. Persistent pain can occur due to an infection at the spot of the prick. This can happen if due sterile precautions are not observed while pricking or subsequently. Here, the site would be swollen and painful due to inflammation associated with infection.
Cleaning of the prick many times a day or doing it roughly can cause irritation of the raw area, resulting in pain. Accidental injury to a nerve can lead to persistent pain after the prick. At times, there may be a small pre-existing abrasion at the site of the prick; this when hurt again can cause persistent pain.
As mentioned before, a nose stud being heavy would cause more pain. The material of the jewelry also matters. Gold, silver, platinum usually do not cause allergy or any other problem. But using other material for jewelry can induce allergy and subsequent irritation and pain.
You can try using a one week course of antibiotic and anti inflammatory drugs, while applying some antiseptic locally. Get blood sugar tested to exclude diabetes. Because if the blood glucose levels are high as it is with diabetes, there is risk of persistent infection. The problem should resolve in a week. If it persists, the jewelry worn can be removed for a week or so. After the wound heals, it can be put on again.
Dr. Rachna is a specialist in internal medicine at Ruhengeri Hopsital