2D.3 Surface And Unusual Piercings
Description
This article is from the Piercing FAQ, by Anne Greenblatt with numerous contributions by others.
2D.3 Surface And Unusual Piercings
Many piercers do not perform the following piercings because of the
risks of scarring and rejection.
Thanks to Shannon Larratt of the Body Modification Ezine for help in
compiling this information. For information about and documentation of
unusual piercings please see the Body Modification Ezine,
http://www.bme.freeq.com/
Surface Piercings
Also known as surface-to-surface piercings, surface piercings are
temporary in all but the rarest instances. Surface piercings usually
reject because the tension of the skin creates pressure on the
jewelry. Areas most frequently attempted include the Madison (piercing
made at the base of the neck, between the collarbones); under the chin
and along the neck; along the forearms or wrist; in the male pubic
area.
Various types of jewelry have been used in attempts to successfully
heal surface piercings. Some piercers have tried using monofilament
nylon and teflon on the assumption that the flexibility of the
material will reduce stress on the entrances of the
piercing. Stainless Studios http://www.stainless-studios.com/ has
designed a barbell specifically for surface piercings which reduces
the pressure between the jewelry and the tissue.
Elayne Angel of Rings of Desire http://www.ringsofdesire.com commented
on the topic of one successful horizontal forehead piercing:
"I did a forehead piercing on a woman named Jen about 6 years ago,
and it
is still in place. I began with a straight piece of 14 gauge
monofilament.
It took about 8 weeks to heal pretty well but she waited about 3
months
to change to a slightly bent barbell. It was very successful, I
think
in
part because her tissue was pretty pinchable. I was able to start
with a
significant amount of tissue, about 5/8"."
Handweb
The piercing is usually made through the web of skin between the thumb
and forefinger. The piercing must not intersect the muscle
tissue. Handweb piercings are temporary in all but the rarest
instances. The stress created by hand movements often causes the
piercing to reject. Elayne Angel of Rings of Desire
http://www.ringsofdesire.com maintained a handweb piercing for several
years which eventually rejected.
Uvula
The uvula is the "punching bag" in the back of the throat. Most
piercers feel that the risks of performing the piercing are too great
to even consider performing the piercing.
During the Association of Professional Piercers Open Meeting in May
1997 <http://www.safepiercing.org>, two lectures on anatomy and safe
piercing were presented by doctors Martin Goldstein and John Ward
<bones@softdisc.com>. Both discussed the risks of ingesting and
inhaling jewelry, swelling creating an airway blockage, and the hih
risk of infection quickly spreading upwards into the sinuses and,
potentially, into the brain.
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