The first lesson in preventing tattoo and body piercing infection, obviously, is to not get one in the first place. Aside from that, there are a few things you can to do prevent infections in both body piercings and tattoos.

Body piercings have a greater risk of infection because they actually invade the epidermis and dermis layers of the skin. For this reason, more caution is required to prevent infection. Maintaining the area with washings and using the cream that your professional piercer or tattoo artist provides with their service.

Body piercings usually tend to get infected if they were clumsily done. To avoid this, you should make certain that you go to a highly regarded piercer that provides you with disinfected needles and materials. This is the first preventive step you can take to avoid infection.

On the other hand, tattooing is less like to get infected because of the way tattoos are done. The tattoo ink is only introduced in to the dermis layer of the skin. It is normal that bleeding will occur, but tattooing is done using shallow needles and thus has a low risk of getting an infection.

Be sure that your tattoo artist has a very good reputation and uses sanitized equipment. A number of experienced artists possess an autoclave to sterilize their equipment. The major risk of infection with tattooing is hepatitis C caused by using a dirty needle.

Inflammation, cloudy seepage, greenish scabbing, redness and tenderness on the site are some of the signs of an infection. Swelling, redness and itching on the area may be signs of an allergic reaction. You must inform your piercer or tattoo artist to any allergies to products because they might be using a product with latex. Sensitivity to inks may also cause allergic reactions.

Even though majority of piercings and tattoos are painful, the pain should subside within a few days or even a week. If your notice that there is no sign of healing on your tattoo, you should get in touch with your piercer or tattooist and let them take a look at it. In almost all cases, they will be able to let you know on what you need to cure any minor infection.

Finally, if you do, subsequently, get an infection that goes deeper into the skin than the normal minor skin irritation, you should seek the advice of a physician. You may require antibiotics to help rid your body of the infection. Many times this can be done without losing the piercing and without marring of your tattoo.