Healing Vs Infected Belly Button Piercing

While most belly button piercings mend without complications, germs can infiltrate the region before healing is completed. In most cases, infections are minor. Pain, redness, and inflammation are common symptoms, and better hygiene can help.

Complete recovery may take 9–12 months. Meanwhile, a piercing is a healing wound that might be painful, red, or itchy. Intense pain, swelling, or fever, on the other hand, might suggest a serious illness.

It can be challenging to maintain a belly button piercing clean and free of inflammation, especially when clothes contact. This renders belly button piercings less susceptible to infection than other piercings. This article will explain how to identify whether your belly button piercing is contaminated, cure it, and when to seek medical attention.

HOW LONG DOES A BELLY-BUTTON PIERCING TAKE TO HEAL?

A person may be in pain for up to a year in certain situations. The issue is to differentiate between pain and an illness.” In other words, while a navel piercing may appear cured within three to six weeks, it can take up to six months a year to heal, regardless of how well it appears on the exterior.

Plastic surgery with belly button piercing is an option for a belly button that does not heal properly.

What are the warning signs?

Infected belly button piercing symptoms include:

intense pain or a burning feeling at the piercing site, bright red skin
surrounding the piercing or red streaks emanating from it, a fever
fluid from the piercing that may smell awful, a swollen lump near the piercing

Possible Symptoms

There is redness surrounding the piercing.
If your discharge is yellowish-green, you may have an infection.
Although some bruising and acute pain ought to be expected, persistent extreme discomfort indicates amiss.

Not Likely to Be an Infection

Crustiness or what seems to be dead skin are not signs of an infection. You’re probably fine unless another symptom follows it.

Mild erythema.
Soreness.

In a healed piercing, clear or very soft yellow discharge is usual.

If you have one of the evident indicators of infection, then you should begin treatment right once to avoid severe problems such as abscess formation.

Remove the jewelry if you suspect your piercing is infected. This can obstruct the infection, resulting in abscesses beneath the skin. It would be best to have enough drainage so the piercing may heal.

It might be difficult to distinguish between indications of infection and routine healing. Pain and edema are usual shortly after a piercing.

It is critical to keep track of how symptoms evolve. If symptoms like discomfort continue improving, the piercing will likely usually heal.

Complications

The piercing procedure can spread blood-borne illnesses, including HIV and hepatitis B and C. When cutting gear and jewelry are not sterile, the danger increases, especially if the sharp needle has been shared.

Always go with a reputable piercer. Anyone unclear if their piercings were sterile should consider having these infections examined.

An infection may spread throughout the body from a piercing. In certain situations, the condition might lead to fatal consequences.

Anyone with a weaker immune system should see a doctor before getting a piercing, and anyone showing indications of infection should seek medical attention right once.

How to Tell If You Have a Metal Allergy

Allergic responses occur if you are allergic to the metal being utilized. Nickel-piercing jewelry, for example, is known to induce allergic reactions in vulnerable individuals.

Metals suitable for body piercings include:

surgical steel

solid 14-karat or 18-karat gold
niobium
titanium

platinum

The following are symptoms of an allergic reaction:

An itchy, inflammatory rash develops around the piercing and extends to a greater region

a punctured hole that seems to be bigger than before
The tenderness that comes and goes

Maintain the piercing hole open

If you suspect an infection, do not remove the jewelry until your doctor instructs you. To cure ailments, most piercings do not need to be removed.

Pus can drain if the piercing site is kept open. Leaving the hole to seal may trap the disease inside your body, resulting in the formation of an abscess.

Clear out the piercing

Cleaning your piercing is essential for both preventing and treating infection. Cleaning a piercing not more than twice a day is recommended by experts.

To eliminate any dried healing fluids, use a saltwater combination (1/2 teaspoon sea salt per 1 cup of water).

After that, clean with a bar of mild antiseptic soap and water. You might also utilize only one of these cleaning procedures.

First, remember to use antibacterial soap to wash your hands. Then, carefully cleanse the region surrounding your belly button and the ring with a cotton swab and the cleaning solution. Using a clean cloth, pat the area dry.

Alcohol and hydrogen peroxide might dry out your skin and aggravate the region surrounding the piercing.

Apply a warm compress

Apply a hot compress to the infected piercing. This can aid in the drainage of pus and the reduction of edema.

Apply your cleaning solution on a damp compress, such as a warm washcloth. Apply a bandage to the piercing. After using the wet cloth, carefully dry the area with a clean towel.

Infected Belly Button Piercing vs. Healing

As seen in the photo, a healed belly button piercing has some redness and crustiness centered around the piercing alone.

However, if you have an infection, the redness may expand to the greater belly region and may even look like red lines radiating from the piercing; it will be hot and uncomfortable, and foul-smelling puss will ooze from the location.

Preventive measures

Although it is not feasible to avoid bleeding through your belly button, you can lower your risk by doing the following:

Wear loose-fitting garments around your stomach.

Maintain proper cleanliness, particularly around the belly button.
Maintain a dry environment around your belly button.
Reduce your sugar intake if you are fat to help avoid yeast infections.

Final Verdict

A piercing is a skin injury that requires time to heal. Caring for the piercing as though it were a wound can dramatically reduce the chance of infection.

If a piercing gets infected, seek treatment as soon as possible.

Receiving timely treatment increases the probability that the piercing will heal well and not need to be removed.