NEEDLESS TO SAY, WE DON'T USE PIERCING GUNS
I’m often asked why I don’t use piercing guns at Vesso Art Studio, and put simply, it’s because they are dangerous.
Reusable ear-piercing guns, which are used by high-street retail shops offering piercing services (often aimed at children), and in some piercing studios, introduce unnecessary risk into the process and can result in lasting damage.
There are two main issues:
- Hygiene risk through cross contamination
Unlike using single-use, disposable piercing needles, you cannot be guaranteed that reusable ear-piercing guns have been properly sterilised.
Plastic ear-guns in particular, which cannot be sterilised in an autoclave, may not be sufficiently cleaned between use on multiple customers. This means the gun, which comes into direct contact with blood and body fluids, can become contaminated with bloodborne pathogens dozens of times in one day. This heightens the possibility of bloodborne disease-causing microorganisms through such ear piercing, as many medical studies report.
- Tissue damage
Piercing guns can also cause significant body tissue damage. Although slightly pointy in appearance, most ear-piercing studs are actually quite dull and broad tipped. Piercings must therefore be accomplished by using excessive pressure over a larger surface area in order to force the metal shaft through the skin. The effect on the body is more like a crush injury than a piercing and causes similar tissue damage. Medically, this is referred to as "blunt force trauma”. As a minimum, this causes significant pain and swelling, and at worst results in scarring and potentially increased incidence of auricular chondritis, a severe tissue disfigurement.
Using a needle, the skin is literally ‘pierced’. The needle is hollow and has a sharp point to create a clean hole - it removes a small amount of skin and tissue for the jewellery to rest, allowing room for the wound to drain and to heal. This also makes it a less painful option, which is an important consideration, particularly when piercing children’s ears.
If you want a piercing done, it’s important to go with an expert who uses proper methods and is familiar and trained in bloodbourne pathogens and infection control.
At Vesso Studio, we only ever pierce with a brand new, completely sterilized single-use needle that is immediately disposed of in a ‘medical sharp’ container after use on one piercing.
We pride ourselves in our top-notch cleanliness and professionalism. All of our reusable equipment are diligently cleaned using top quality medical grade cleaners, then sterilised by our class B Statim 2000 autoclave at 134 degrees which regularly undergoes checks to insure it is running correctly.
We open all tools, single-use needles and jewellery in front of our customers so you can see it is fresh from the sterile packaging.
We will give you aftercare instructions before you leave and also email a copy in case you forget. It’s important to remember the basics: keep it clean, don’t touch it all the time, do not sleep on it - and make sure you come back when advised for downsizing the jewellery or you could risk irritation or infection.
The most important thing to remember is we do everything we can to make the process as safe, quick and comfortable as possible.
If you’re considering a new piercing take a look at our FAQs and our new range of jewellery. If you have any questions or would like to book in, give us a call, we’d love to hear from you.