Sarojini
08-18-2006, 04:18 PM
Ok, so you know my new tattoo? Well, it's in that annoying but normal stage where it's kind of flaking and peeling a little bit; when it quits that it will be finished :)
However, it's pretty dang itchy while it's doing this, and all was going well until yesterday, when I turned around to look at it. I expected to see a little redness around the tattoo and some flaking, but instead MY ENTIRE LOWER BACK WAS RED. :mad: Not just a little around the outlines of the tattoo -- I'm talking bottom of rib cage to top of butt, and from side to side!!
I decided to wait until today and see what happened. NOTHING happened. It was still just as red and was actually warm to the touch today. This set off alarm bells in my head... of course, with a medical background and a tendency towards pessimism ;) I immediately gave myself a differential diagnosis of either allergy to the tattoo ink (even though the tattoo looked normal and was there, healing completely normally, amidst my red skin) ... or cellulitis (inflammation of skin and underlying structures due to staph or strep introduced by the tattoo needles).
In a panic, I called my dermatologist's office... my derm couldn't see me but they fit me in with another one because they felt it was important to have it looked at (I was glad, because with it being Friday, I did NOT want to end up spending my weekend in the ER if it got worse).
The resident came in and looked and immediately said that he thought it was NEITHER cellulitis or ink allergy, which was good... but I wanted the attending's opinion too. So I waited. I could hear the resident go in to discuss the case with the attending, and I heard him describe that I had a biohazard tattoo over my butt, and I heard the doctor squeal, "SO cool" and just about die laughing about that....
So she came in and also said it was not cellulitis (not red enough and no systemic symptoms) although I should watch anyway to make certain nothing develops and call the on-call this weekend if it worsens.... and she also said she'd seen a lot of tattoos over the years and this was most definitely NOT an ink allergy (thankfully).
Of course, no one actually knows WHAT caused the rash though. Possible culprits include allergy to the antibacterial soap I had to use in the beginning or the ointment I had been using for a few days. The other possibility, it seems, is that I just got a rash, and it was just a coincidence that it occured now (not so far fetched... I get rashes ALL the time, of all different types).
Sooo.... they had to have the hospital compounding service mix some steroid cream into some Eucerin cream and I am supposed to put that on the rash twice a day.
WHAT A PAIN... only I would suddenly develop a rash of unknown origin on a Friday around a tattoo I'd waited for 10 years to get.... SIGH*
Well, at least it seems it's nothing serious as of yet. I hope this cream helps. Already takes the itch away some, so that's progress I suppose....
However, it's pretty dang itchy while it's doing this, and all was going well until yesterday, when I turned around to look at it. I expected to see a little redness around the tattoo and some flaking, but instead MY ENTIRE LOWER BACK WAS RED. :mad: Not just a little around the outlines of the tattoo -- I'm talking bottom of rib cage to top of butt, and from side to side!!
I decided to wait until today and see what happened. NOTHING happened. It was still just as red and was actually warm to the touch today. This set off alarm bells in my head... of course, with a medical background and a tendency towards pessimism ;) I immediately gave myself a differential diagnosis of either allergy to the tattoo ink (even though the tattoo looked normal and was there, healing completely normally, amidst my red skin) ... or cellulitis (inflammation of skin and underlying structures due to staph or strep introduced by the tattoo needles).
In a panic, I called my dermatologist's office... my derm couldn't see me but they fit me in with another one because they felt it was important to have it looked at (I was glad, because with it being Friday, I did NOT want to end up spending my weekend in the ER if it got worse).
The resident came in and looked and immediately said that he thought it was NEITHER cellulitis or ink allergy, which was good... but I wanted the attending's opinion too. So I waited. I could hear the resident go in to discuss the case with the attending, and I heard him describe that I had a biohazard tattoo over my butt, and I heard the doctor squeal, "SO cool" and just about die laughing about that....
So she came in and also said it was not cellulitis (not red enough and no systemic symptoms) although I should watch anyway to make certain nothing develops and call the on-call this weekend if it worsens.... and she also said she'd seen a lot of tattoos over the years and this was most definitely NOT an ink allergy (thankfully).
Of course, no one actually knows WHAT caused the rash though. Possible culprits include allergy to the antibacterial soap I had to use in the beginning or the ointment I had been using for a few days. The other possibility, it seems, is that I just got a rash, and it was just a coincidence that it occured now (not so far fetched... I get rashes ALL the time, of all different types).
Sooo.... they had to have the hospital compounding service mix some steroid cream into some Eucerin cream and I am supposed to put that on the rash twice a day.
WHAT A PAIN... only I would suddenly develop a rash of unknown origin on a Friday around a tattoo I'd waited for 10 years to get.... SIGH*
Well, at least it seems it's nothing serious as of yet. I hope this cream helps. Already takes the itch away some, so that's progress I suppose....