Ear cartilage piercings more likely to get infected

It’s riskier to pierce your ear cartilage than your ear lobe, according to a study in the Feb. 25 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

After a doctor reported treating two newly pierced patients with infected ears, public health agencies in Oregon started an investigation. They tracked the outbreak to an ear-piercing kiosk where both young patients had their ears done. Other stylin’ clients had contracted the bacterial infection, too, and four were hospitalized.

Upper ear cartilage piercings were more likely to be infected than traditional lobe piercings. Read the abstract.