-Avoid using cotton or q-tips to clean your piercing. These fibers can get wrapped around your jewelry and harbor bacteria, which can cause infection.
Always avoid using cotton balls or Q-tips when cleaning your cartilage piercing, as they may leave behind lint. They may also get caught on the piercing itself, which could cause injury to your ear.
o Twice a day saturate a cotton swab or Q-Tip with the cleaning solution, apply to pierced area, let soak for a few minutes. o Remove any dried matter. o Rotate the jewelry while the area is wet.
Cotton swabs – these are ideal for cleaning your new piercing. We don't recommend cotton balls because they are harder to use in small spaces and their fibers can get caught and tug your new earrings.
Rinse with clean water after your salt soak to prevent salt crystals forming, which can cause irritation and slow the healing process. 3) It is normal for dried blood or serous fluid (yellow crust) to form around the edges of your piercing. DO NOT pick it away while it is dry.
Avoid cleaning with alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, antibacterial soaps, iodine, or any harsh products, as these can damage cells. Also avoid ointments as they prevent necessary air circulation. Avoid Bactine®, pierced ear care solutions, and other products containing Benzalkonium Chloride (BZK).
After submerging the piercing site in the saline, the person should rinse it with clean water and gently pat it dry with a clean paper towel. Another option is to dip a cotton wool ball or Q-tip in warm saline solution and apply that to the piercing site for a few minutes.
DO NOT pick the crusties off—that's just introducing your dirty hands to a healing piercing and can increase your risk of infection. The best way to clean them is to soak the piercing in warm saline solution, softening the crusties which then come off easily.
Gently wash your piercings with a mild, fragrance-free soap and water at least once a day. Thoroughly rinse your piercings after washing them. Using petroleum jelly that comes in a squeeze tube, gently apply a thin coat around each opening. Keep an eye on your ears.
Outer Ear Infections
When the ear starts to hurt or feels blocked, typically you may try to clean the ear with cotton swabs (Q-tips) or irrigate it with solutions like hydrogen peroxide. Unfortunately, this tends to make the issue worse. As the swelling in the ear canal worsens, the pain may become severe.
The only way your piercing will heal properly is if you keep it clean at all times throughout the aftercare phase. Failing to keep your piercing clean can mean infections, which will ultimately make it take even longer for your piercing to heal.
The Aftercare: Keep it clean with water and saline solution or mild soap, avoid sleeping on your stomach, and be aware of any rigorous exercise that might irritate the hole. Keep in mind: This piercing is a slow heal, but only because the abdomen is a hot spot for movement.
When does it start? Because ears will be swollen and tender immediately after piercing, it is best to wait 24 hours before touching them. Piercing aftercare begins 24 hours after your ears are pierced and will occur 2-3 times per day and continue for several weeks.
The soap cleaning should be done once per day and salt soaks one to two times per day. As important as it is to clean piercings, you don't want to overdo it. Cleaning your piercing means touching your piercing, and too much touching will irritate it. This is especially true during the first couple of weeks of healing.
While your piercing is healing, try not to touch it except when you're cleaning it and always wash your hands thoroughly before cleansing. There's no reason to rotate your piercing. You could damage the delicate, healing skin by rotating the jewelry.
Don't touch a new piercing or twist the jewelry unless you're cleaning it. Keep clothing away from the piercing, too. Excessive rubbing or friction can irritate your skin and delay healing. Keep the jewelry in place.
Keep the piercing dry by using a piece of gauze at the end of your shower to gently pat the piercing, or let it air dry before putting clothing over it. If you sleep with wet hair, simply pin the hair back so the piercing can breathe and stay dry.
Your piercing might be infected if: the area around it is swollen, painful, hot, very red or dark (depending on your skin colour) there's blood or pus coming out of it – pus can be white, green or yellow.
Crustiness, on the other hand, is the buildup of seepage that results from the body trying to heal the piercing as it would any other wound. Typically these are light or near-colorless and should reduce as the piercing, and healing process, matures.