A medical tattoo is a
tattoo used to treat a condition, communicate medical information, or mark a body location for treatment. People may get a paramedical tattoo to conceal a condition or the effects of treatment, such as creating the appearance of an
areola after
breast reconstruction, or a
cover-up tattoo to disguise the area in an artistic way.
Historical uses
A crude practice of
corneal tattooing was performed by
Galen in 150 CE. He tried to cover
leucomatous opacities of the cornea by
cauterizing the surface with a heated stilet and applying powdered
nutgalls and iron or pulverized pomegranate bark mixed with copper salt.[1] With the rise of Christianity, tattooing declined and eventually became banned by a papal edict in 787 CE.[2]
During the
Cold War, threats of nuclear warfare led several U.S. states to consider blood type tattooing. Programs were spurred in Chicago, Utah and Indiana based on the premise that if an atomic bomb were to strike, the resulting damage would require extremely large amounts of blood within a short amount of time.[7][8][9][10]
Similar to
dog tags, members of the U.S. military may have their vital information tattooed on themselves, usually on the
rib cage below the armpit; they are referred to as "meat tags".[11][12][13]
Tattoos have also been used to provide notice to emergency personnel that a person has
diabetes mellitus; people with this condition may fall into a
diabetic coma and be unable to communicate that information.[14][15]Medical alert jewelry, such as bracelets, are the most common way to provide this notice, but some people prefer tattoos due to the cost and inconvenience of losing or breaking jewelry.[16] Because diabetes can impair wound healing, people with diabetes may need to carefully choose the location and timing of a medical tattoo.[16]
For radiation treatment
Tattoos have been used as
fiducial markers as an aid in guiding
radiotherapy.[17] Typically these markers are tattooed in dark permanent ink, but
ultraviolet tattoos, which are mostly invisible under normal light, have been studied as an alternative to minimize impact on patient body image.[18][19]Scott Kelly used marker tattoos in the positioning of sonogram probes for multiple checks for
atherosclerosis while on a long-duration mission on the
International Space Station.[20]
A paramedical tattoo is a cosmetic tattoo applied to conceal a medical condition or to disguise the results of its treatment, typically in a realistic style. Alternatively, people with skin conditions or scars may choose to get a decorative
cover-up tattoo with a piece of art over the area.
During
breast reconstruction after
mastectomy (removal of the breast for treatment of cancer), or
breast reduction surgery, tattooing is sometimes used to replace the
areola which has been removed during mastectomy, or to fill in areas of pigment loss which may occur during breast reduction performed with a free nipple graft technique.[22] Since September 2011, the
Royal Derby Hospital offers free nipple tattoos for breast surgery patients in order to mask the scars of surgery. The purchase of the tattoo device was funded by the Ashbourne Breast Cancer Walk.[23] Vinnie Myers of Little Vinnie's Tattoos in
Finksburg, Maryland, has performed nipple tattoos on over 5,000 women who have undergone surgery for breast cancer, including those of Caitlin Kiernan, who wrote a story about Myers in The New York Times.[24][25] A similar service offered without charge in 2017 by a cosmetic tattooist in the UK was booked up six months ahead.[26] Another option some people choose after mastectomy is to get a decorative tattoo on the chest as body art instead of a reconstruction.[27]
Other uses include simulating the appearance of fingernails and covering scars.[28] Micropigmentation (
permanent makeup) can be used to reduce the visibility of
vitiligo areas on the skin.[29]
Eyebrow enhancement tattoos such as
microblading can provide benefits for individuals with medical conditions like
alopecia or
trichotillomania, providing a natural-looking restoration of eyebrows lost due to these conditions.
^Turell, R (1942). Technic of tattooing with mercury sulfide. Ann Surg. pp. 126–30.
^Von Wecker, L (1872). Das Tätowiren der Hornhaut. Arch Augenheilkunde. pp. 84–7.
^"Booklet tells what to do if city is bombed". No. 7. Chicago Daily Tribune. Dec 7, 1950.
^"Mass tattoo of 200,000 on in Lake County". No. 1. Chicago Daily Tribune. August 26, 1951.
^Kite, L (August 2, 2006). "Sign of the times". The Herald Journal.
^Wolf, E. K; Laumann, A. E (2008). "The use of blood-type tattoos during the Cold War". Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. 58 (3): 472–6.
doi:
10.1016/j.jaad.2007.11.019.
PMID18280343.
^Katherine Kington (27 February 2012).
"Medical tattoos on the rise". WTVM. Retrieved 22 March 2012. Donny says much like an Army dog tag, the soldiers call them meat tags.
^Reilly, Rick (17 February 2003).
"Where Have All the Young Men Gone?". Time. Vol. 161, no. 2–10. Time Inc. Archived from
the original on February 22, 2008. Retrieved 22 March 2012. A lot of 'em are young and scared to be going over," says Rachael Mays of the Sleeping Dragon tattoo parlor. "They come in for their meat tags. You know, dog tags for the skin. Their name, rank, serial number, religion, blood type and gas-mask size. They want 'em in case they're blown in half. Then at least some part of them can come back to their folks.
^Potter S, Barker J, Willoughby L, Perrott E, Cawthorn SJ, Sahu AK (June 2007). "Patient satisfaction and time-saving implications of a nurse-led nipple and areola reconstitution service following breast reconstruction". Breast. 16 (3): 293–6.
doi:
10.1016/j.breast.2006.12.004.
PMID17241786.
^Locke, Katherine (7 August 2013).
"Women choose body art over reconstruction after cancer battle". The Guardian. More women are choosing not to reconstruct after a mastectomy and tattoo over the scar tissue instead.... The mastectomy tattoo will become just another option for post cancer patients and a truly personal way of regaining control over post cancer bodies and proving once and for all that breast cancer is not just a pink ribbon.