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Piercing guns are outdated and should be banned, says Inverness piercer who is supporting campaign by United Kingdom Association of Professional Piercers (UKAPP) after seeing influx of infections and problems


By Val Sweeney

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Sophie Milne places the piercing and needle in the steriliser.
Sophie Milne places the piercing and needle in the steriliser.

A professional body piercer in Inverness is calling for a ban on piercing guns after seeing an influx of emergencies.

Sophie Milne says they include children who have developed problems and infections after having their ears pierced elsewhere.

Miss Milne, a trained piercer, is now trying to raise awareness of the issue and supporting a campaign for piercing guns to be banned in the UK.

“I have recently experienced an influx of clients with extremely worrying piercing emergencies,” said Miss Milne, of Pierced at Sophie.

“These piercings have been done using the gun method which is extremely outdated and advised against for many reasons.”

She acknowledged that not everyone experienced a problem but maintained there were increased risks regarding hygiene and tissue damage.

Miss Milne follows guidance issued by the United Kingdom Association of Professional Piercers (UKAPP) – a non-profit, voluntary organisation which aims to spread knowledge of safe piercing practices and up-to-date education for industry professionals and the public.

It advocates only sterile disposable equipment is suitable for body piercing, and that only materials which are certified as safe for internal implant should be placed inside a fresh or unhealed piercing.

Miss Milne says she was recently contacted by one mother seeking help after her young daughter had her ears pierced with a piercing gun.

“The earrings had become embedded into her ears and she couldn’t get them out,” Miss Milne said. “I had to send them to accident and emergency. She was very upset.”

She also had to send another young person to her GP after she developed a nasty infection.

Miss Milne explained that piercing guns are often made from a hard plastic with a spring-loaded system inside.

“The spring system holds a standard earring with a butterfly back and forces it to rip through the tissue, causing blunt force trauma to the ear as well as a huge increased risk of over swelling which then causes jewellery to embed and needs removed,” she said.

She also said guns with a plastic case were not safe to use in an autoclave – a machine which uses steam under pressure to kill harmful bacteria – as they would melt.

She said guns were usually wiped down with an alcohol-based disinfectant which did not kill pathogens such as Pseudomonas spp and Staphylococcus spp.

“The fact that any item is not sterilised and reused between clients is massively concerning,” she said.

Sophie Milne is required to have an autoclave steriliser to sterilise all reusable tools and any jewellery.
Sophie Milne is required to have an autoclave steriliser to sterilise all reusable tools and any jewellery.

As a professional body piercer, Miss Milne – who is currently relocating her business into Ardross Street – is required to have an autoclave steriliser to sterilise all re-usable tools and any jewellery.

“This costs thousands a year even after the purchase of the steriliser as I have to maintain it with regular services, any parts required for fixing and the running of it,” she said.

Miss Milne also had concerns about the safety of ‘one-size-fits-all’ cheap jewellery used in guns which could cause over swelling and result in trips to GPs and A&E departments.

“The jewellery I use is a flat back implant grade titanium labret,” she said. “I have several lengths of posts to suit each individual anatomy. This gives room for swelling and allows the client to heal.”

She added that after-care advice involving twisting and turning the earrings twice a day, using surgical spirits/TCP or tea tree oil following gun piercings was also outdated as it had been proven to cause more harm than good.

Miss Milne, a former dental nurse who has been carrying out piercings for two years, will attend UKAPP’s conference in Manchester next month for the second year in a row.

She said by attending each year, she aimed to show she continued to update her knowledge, learn from others and keep up-to-date with techniques/jewellery.

Last year, she supported a petition lodged on the UK Parliament’s website calling for piercing guns to be banned. It gained almost 5000 signatures.


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