DHAKA: With the growing popularity of tattoos, health officials say they are seeing more cases of a nasty skin infection caused by a common bacteria traced to the ink. In the largest outbreak, 19 people in Rochester, N.Y., ended up with bubbly rashes on their new tattoos, researchers reported Wednesday.
Infections from tattooing are nothing new. Hepatitis, staph infections and even the superbug known as MRSA have been tied to tattoos. Dirty needles and unsanitary conditions are often to blame.
But all the New York cases were linked to an unidentified artist who wore disposable gloves and sterilized his instruments. The problem, investigators concluded, was in the ink.
"Even if you get a tattoo from a facility that does everything right, it`s not risk free," said Dr. Byron Kennedy, deputy director of the health department in New York`s Monroe County. He is lead author of a report on last fall`s Rochester cases was released by the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday.
In the past year, there have been 22 confirmed cases and more than 30 suspected cases of the skin infection in Colorado, Iowa, New York and Washington state, health officials said. The infections were tied to ink or water used to dilute the ink. Tattoo artists and ink makers should use only sterile water to dilute ink, health officials advise.
Scattered reports of the illness in tattoo customers have been reported over the past 10 years. But they may be growing more common as more people get tattoos, experts said. An estimated 1 in 5 U.S. adults have at least one tattoo, an increase from years past, according to polls.
Source: Yahoo News
BDST: 1040 HRS, AUG 23, 2012
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