Mateuszczyk et al. / Clinics and Practice
Red pigmentation used in man’s tattoo
An ordeal that lasted several years for a tattooed Polish man, who underwent multiple surgeries to excise every fragment of skin with red ink, highlights the serious allergic reactions that tattoo pigments can trigger in some people.
A man in his thirties underwent a battery of evaluations, treatments and surgeries before doctors were able to understand his condition. “unusual constellation” of symptoms, which began to appear around four months after getting a tattoo on his right forearm.
One rash red and itchy skin spread over the man’s arms and chest, then worsening to eritrodermiaa severe and widespread skin inflammation.
Doctors thought these symptoms were related to eczema until they appeared.”eruptive-type changes” specifically on the man’s red pigmented skin immediately after stopping taking the medication.
In the years after getting the tattoo, lost the ability to sweatall or body hair fell out and developed vitiligo, a condition that causes skin depigmentation.
An allergy specialist then recommended a surgical removal from the inflamed fragments of the tattoo on the forearm, after which the skin changes were gradually regressing.
Only when the red tattoo ink was completely removed and he was administered immunosuppressive drugsis that your general condition has improved. The hair grew back and the vitiligo stabilized, but the damage to the sweat glands remained, with little chance of them working again.
Extreme cases like this are rarebut some surveys suggest that around 6 percent of people experience systemic reactions or persistent health problems after getting tattoos, and up to 67 percent report skin reactions of varying severity.
The case was reported by the medical team at the Medical University of Vroclávia, in Poland, in a recently published in the journal Clinics and Practice.
“In light of this case, there is growing recognition of the need to regulations on the composition of tattoo inksas well as education aimed at both tattoo artists and the public regarding tattoo safety”, write the authors of the article.
Skin changes within the red ink (A, B) of the tattoo on the man’s right forearm and his hairless chest (C)
In 2022, two years after the Polish man got tattooed, the European Union introduced regulations on the composition of tattoo inks, to restrict the use of dangerous chemicals. Although, In many countries, there is still no any regulation, notes the .
The medical team Unable to obtain a paint sample red with the man’s tattoo artist, so They couldn’t test it. regarding toxic and carcinogenic substances commonly found in red tattoo pigments, such as mercury and synthetic azo dyes.
The tattoo is a ancestral practice with rich cultural traditions and artistic talent.
Does not includeHowever, practices have changedand concerns about tattoo inks are growing as we understand how pigments injected deep into the skin move through the body and accumulate in the lymph nodes, activating immune cells that cannot eliminate the insoluble ink.
Recent tests also show that many tattoo inks contain compounds that are not listed on the labelmaking it even more difficult, if not impossible, to identify what causes some allergic reactions.
In this case, the team suspects that the red ink from the tattoo, whatever its content, triggered an exaggerated response in the immune system of man, who was already sensitive due to a pre-existing autoimmune condition.
Skin biopsies from the man’s hands and left armpit revealed that remains few sweat glandseven on your non-tattooed skin.
“Patients with some autoimmune diseases, such as our patient, with Hashimoto’s thyroiditisshould be particularly cautious when deciding to get a tattoo,” the team writes, noting that reactions to red inks have been reported in people with atopic dermatitis, asthma and celiac disease.
With his inability to sweat, Poles are at high risk of suffering from “heat stroke”, a serious medical condition that occurs when the body loses ability to regulate its temperaturewhich quickly rises to dangerous levels. The patient uses a water spray bottle to stay cool, but is unable to exercise or work like he used to.
