Signs of a tattoo infection may appear across the entire tattoo or only within specific colors. They can include: Bumps on your skin (papules) that sometimes contain pus (pustules). Nodules, bumps on or below your skin that are larger than papules.
If your tattoo is INFECTED things will look different than when it's irritated. You might still see some redness, swelling, and soreness, but look at the extended area away from the tattoo to investigate for drainage of fluid or pus, severe redness, excessive swelling, and tenderness.
Call your doctor or nurse advice line now or seek immediate medical care if: You lose feeling in the area near the tattoo, or it feels numb or tingly. The skin near the tattoo turns pale or cool. The tattoo starts to bleed, and blood soaks through the bandage.
Signs include skin getting redder around the tattoo, redness spreading, increased pain, pus from the tattoo, fever.
An infected tattoo doesn't usually heal on its own. Infections require specific medications depending on the germ that's causing it. If untreated, infections can cause serious complications. That's why it's important to get medical care if you think your tattoo is infected.
Signs of sepsis are: • Pale, blotchy or blue skin, lips or tongue. Blotchy skin is when parts of your skin are a different colour than normal. Sometimes it is hard to know if you or somebody you look after has sepsis, or if it is something else, like flu or a chest infection.
Moisturize: Treat your tattoo like a skin wound and keep the area clean and covered with a water-based moisturizer and bandage. Don't use petroleum-based lotions like Vaseline or Neosporin as these can trap moisture and bacteria, which can lead to infections and scarring.
Many people experience a slight inflammation, but if symptoms persist, a person should see their doctor. Antibiotic treatment can usually resolve a tattoo related infection. Without treatment, complications of a skin infection, such as a deeper infection, and, rarely, sepsis may occur in some people.
In tattooed skin, these infections will often present as a sudden increase in the erythema and edema after an initial period of improvement following tattoo placement. Antibiotics that cover MSSA and beta-hemolytic streptococci such as cephalexin 500 mg QID for 6 days are appropriate initial treatments.
Tattoo infections are rare. In fact, as few as 6% of people who get a tattoo experience any type of infection.
Mild discomfort and skin irritation are pretty normal after getting a tattoo. But some symptoms like a bumpy rash, pus, pain, or fever might be the sign of an infected tattoo. 1 This can happen when bacteria or other germs are transmitted through the skin via unsterile tattoo tools, products, or sanitary practices.
It's typically caused when a tattoo artist presses too aggressively into the skin, deposits ink at the wrong angle, or overworks the skin, which occurs more often with a less-experienced tattoo artist but can happen with any artist.
Natural migration of pigment in the skin is manifested by: lines become visually wider; a small (about a millimeter) shadow may appear near the tattoo lines; there will be less empty space between the lines.
Will an Infected Tattoo Still Heal? A mild infection that is caught and treated early likely won't ruin the tattoo, but the longer it's left untreated, the more risk you run of visual changes to the tattoo.
Apply a thin layer of antibiotic ointment such as Bacitracin™ Zinc Oxide ointment, Neosporin™ or Vitamin A&D ointment. After 5 days, substitute a gentle fragrance-free and color-free body lotion. Repeat the above washing/ointment procedure at least 3 times a day for 1–2 weeks.
Until the surface of the tattoo is healed (at a minimum of two to three weeks), wash the area gently 2-3 times per day. After cleaning the tattoo during this two to three week period, gently apply a thin coat of a lotion-based care product. We recommend After Inked tattoo moisturizer and aftercare lotion.
MRSA may look like a bump on the skin that may be red, swollen, warm to the touch, painful, filled with pus, or draining. The pus or drainage contains the infectious bacteria that can be spread to others.
Signs and symptoms of an infection
Fever (this is sometimes the only sign of an infection). Chills and sweats. Change in cough or a new cough. Sore throat or new mouth sore.