Tuesday, August 27, 2013

How to treat an infected belly button piercing?

Pierced areas, particularly sensitive areas like the navel or belly button, can cause breaks in the skin that can be a basis of infection. On the first 2-3 days of getting your piercing, you may observe that your navel feels warm to the touch, might seem inflamed and also be sore, it is okay but should not be last for more days. In case of belly button piercing, the well-known saying ‘Prevention is better than cure’ stands true, wherein ignore can result in different types of infections. Thus, it is better that you take good care after undertaking navel piercings to stay away from further risks.

How to treat an infected belly button piercing?

If an infected belly button piercing is not treated soon, then it can lead to future scarring and several hazardous illnesses. As soon as you see piercing to swell and smelly green (or yellow) pus oozing out, its time to take prompt action, otherwise the infection can spread to any part of your body. You might experience pain and warmth around the infection, and there can be also bleeding. Identifying the symptoms of an infected belly piercing is essential, so that one can look for a proper treatment. The steps to prevent the infection are not hard; though it is important that the steps are followed carefully.


One of the hardest piercings to heal is Navel piercing, in which complete healing may take 1-2 years also. The healing time can extend with things like unhealthy diet, illness, stress, or poor quality jewelry. On the other hand, clean clothes and bedding, good nutrition and exercise, multivitamins like vitamin C and zinc, can assist in healing and decrease the risk of infection. Go through different ways mentioned here to cure an infected belly button piercing.

How to recognize an infection of belly button piercing?
  • Severe pain and swelling around the pierced area
  • Skin appears red, dry, and flaky where the piercing is done
  • Bleeding occur with piercing
  • An abscess is present on the navel
  • Pus may discharge from the wound or the piercing
  • A foul odor from the belly due to pus formation
  • Feel warm around the piercing area when touched
  • Discoloration (red to purple or skin darkness) of the skin nearby the belly
Ways to heal an infected belly button piercing:

Taking care of piercing is not at all an easy task, and if you want to prevent infection, it is very important that you follow all care instructions provided to you at the time of your piercing, and ensure to follow them for longer than recommended; until the piercing is completely healed in order to get best results. You can enjoy your piercing for so many years and experience a clean and safe healing procedure by following all care guidelines.

Apply a hot compress

Apply hot compress over the affected part as it helps increasing the blood flow also getting rid of the infection. Note that hot compress should be disposable and preferably made from clean disposable materials like gauge bandages and cotton balls. Take a clean cloth and soak the compress thoroughly with water, and put the cloth in microwave for nearly 25 seconds until it gets hot. Put the compress on the infected region until the cloth cools down - repeat this procedure for few times. The heat from the compress will help to increase blood supply to the infected part and lets pus to drain.

Use an Antibacterial soaps

Antibiotic is one of the best remedies to treat belly piercing infection, so it is suggested to wash the area with an antibacterial soap. Don’t use the soap, which has fragrance in it. Before the cleaning procedure, wash your hands and use a Q-tip soaked in warm water to eradicate the hard crust in the navel. Apply soap to the affected part, afterwards rinse it off wholly with water. Do this cleansing process 2 times a day.

Salty water solution

Salt water is a good antibacterial solution that helps healing faster and prevents bacterial infections. Firstly, wash your hands thoroughly before cleaning, or touching your piercing with liquid antibacterial or antimicrobial soap. Hot compress should be used in order to increase blood circulation to the pierced navel and let the infection to drain. Soaking piercing in the hot salt water is also very helpful. Take a teaspoon of Table salt in an 8-ounce of warm water, here Epsom salt or Kosher salt cannot be used as they are not like sea or table salt. Pure sea salt is accessible at most convenient stores. Soak cotton balls or clean cloth thoroughly with the salt water and put on the infected part for around 5-10 minutes, before rinsing off the area. Then, dry it with a clean paper towel. Do this regularly 2-3 times a day and make sure that you do not use the same used material for cleaning again.

Use over-the-counter antiseptic creams

If you have mild infection, then over-the-counter antibiotic or antiseptic creams work wonders. Take some cream on your fingers and softly rub on infected belly button piercing area. Note that these creams should not be used for any puncture wound or a long period of time since it blocks the pores, which increases the healing time.

Don’t swim and Don’t apply ointment, alcohol or peroxide

Besides soapy water in your piercing, it’s best to stay away from getting anything other, so it is advised not to swim in a natural river, a chlorinated pool or a hot tub with bromine. Don’t apply ointment as it will prevent oxygen, which is necessary for the curing procedure, from reaching the piercing. Alcohol or peroxide should also be avoided as both can dry out the skin; indeed hydrogen peroxide is an oxidizing agent that can have corrosive effects on your skin and upset wound repair.

Don’t touch the piercing or remove the jewelry during the healing process

You should only touch the button ring when cleaning it and don’t forget to wash your hands beforehand. Healing process can take some weeks to months, so don’t remove the jewelry during the healing process. Talk with your piercing artist or read the paperwork that you received with the piercing to get a proper guideline about time period.

Prevention tips:
  • In place of cloth towels, use cotton swabs to clean the piercing daily since they can dock germs and bacteria which might infect the piercing.
  • Natural antibacterial agents such as tea tree and lavender oil can accelerate the healing process of the wound. As well, Emu oil has been recognized to give outstanding results when healing a piercing.
  • Don’t use a waistband, until the healing process is complete.
  • Don’t hurry to remove the old ring and put up a new one as the possibility is more that you will hurt the piercing, which in turn will affect the healing time.
  • Don’t clean the piercing with a towel as your ring may get stuck in the towel's fibers, and the infection may spread.
How to take care of an Infected Belly Button piercing - Youtube Video:

1 comments:

Thanks for giving nice information regarding treat an infected belly button piercing, Peoples can use antibiotics for treating there infections, Antibiotics are medicine that kills bacteria or slows the growth of bacteria. They are used to cure diseases. I am going to share this now. antibiotics to buy for the full duration prescribed is the best way to assure that harmful bacteria causing the infection are completely eradicated Thank you for the post.

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