Tattoos and body piercing are gaining popularity as a form of personal expression. The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommendations for your child’s safety with these body modifications.
Basic Guidelines
- Know that each state has a set of rules and regulations for minimum age. Proper identification is needed and so is parental accompaniment in some cases.
- Look for a clean and sanitary establishment.
- Watch someone else undergo a tattoo or piercing at your chosen establishment.
- Meticulous guidelines for care of the wound is important.
- It’s expensive to get a laser tattoo removal and it isn’t covered by insurance. Consider long and hard before getting a tattoo. A temporary or henna tattoo is a smart first step.
- No tattoo artist or piercer will do a procedure on someone under the influence.
- Make sure tetanus, hepatitis and other immunizations are up to date.
If the procedure site is red, hurts more than the initial needling, red streaking above or below, pus or fever, contact your doctor immediately.
Speak with your child’s pediatrician if he is considering a body modification. She can share risks and complications if your child is passionate about getting a tattoo or piercing.
Listen as Dr. Cora Breuner joins Melanie Cole, MS, to share how to make sure your child is safe when getting a body modification.
Read the AAP report
here.
Featuring:
Cora Breuner, MD, MPH
Cora Collette Breuner, MD, MPH, is currently a Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine and Adjunct Professor of Orthopedics and Sports Medicine.
An expert in adolescent health, she has focused her clinical and research career on the treatment of typical adolescent diseases such as eating disorders, headache and sports injuries by integrating complementary and alternative medicine into the intervention modality options including biofeedback and yoga. She loves to teach residents and medical students and has won multiple teaching awards.
She has contributed greatly to the success of the Seattle Children’s Hospital Adolescent and Young Adult clinic, to the academic and personal mentorship of resident, fellows and medical students and to the continuation of efforts on work life balance and well-being of health care providers, including medical/PA/ARNP/ students, residents and current faculty. She has also worked tirelessly in the Orthopedics department to improve the excellence of care for the adolescent/young adult patient.
Dr. Breuner is the Chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Adolescence with many recently published policy statements on adolescent suicide and suicide prevention, abortion counseling, sexual assault guidelines, care of those with menstrual irregularities and developmental delay, adolescent health services review and sexuality education in adolescents. Her advocacy regionally and nationally has been recognized as true leadership.
Dr. Breuner has three young adult children, loves to sing and play her fiddle, and frequently can be seen dancing Zumba or urban hiking with her two super energetic dogs.
