If a new piercing is infected, it is best not to remove the earring. Removing the piercing can allow the wound to close, trapping the infection within the skin. For this reason, it is advisable not to remove an earring from an infected ear unless advised by a doctor or professional piercer.
When you have an infected piercing, your first thought might be to take your jewelry out. While that might seem like the best thing to do, it's best to leave this to your doctor. If your piercing is actually infected, and you remove the jewelry on your own, you may spread the bacteria.
Gently pat dry the affected area with clean gauze or a tissue. Then apply a small amount of an over-the-counter antibiotic cream (Neosporin, bacitracin, others), as directed on the product label. Turn the piercing jewelry a few times to prevent it from sticking to the skin.
In most cases, minor ear piercing infections go away within 2 weeks with proper home care. When to call a doctor. In some cases, home care might not be enough. If your earring or the backing is stuck inside your earlobe, you should seek care from a doctor.
Don't take your earrings out too early! They will close rather rapidly. Leave earrings in for 6-8 weeks, giving your ears time to heal.
PSA: You should never, ever swap out your jewelry before your piercing has healed—doing so can lead to infection, scarring, permanent swelling, and rejection of the earring (aka when your ear literally pushes the jewelry out), says Ava Lorusso, professional piercer at Studs in NYC.
Signs of an infection
Your piercing might be infected if: the area around it is swollen, painful, hot, very red or dark (depending on your skin colour) there's blood or pus coming out of it – pus can be white, green or yellow. you feel hot or shivery or generally unwell.
Call your doctor or nurse advice line now or seek immediate medical care if: You lose feeling in the area near the piercing, or it feels numb or tingly. The skin near the piercing turns pale or cool. The pierced area starts to bleed, and blood soaks through the bandage.
Avoid baths, hot tubs, swimming pools, saunas, lakes, etc. for the first three weeks after being pierced as they contain bacteria which can increase the risk of infection. If you think you have an infection, keep your jewelry in! This is very important as your jewelry will allow accumulating pus to drain.
Of all the body sites commonly pierced, the navel is the most likely to become infected because of its shape. Infections can often be treated with good skin hygiene and antibiotic medications.
If your piercing is already migrating there's a good chance they will recommend removing it. At this point, there is little risk from removing it, but leaving it in could result in damage to your skin and make it difficult to repierce the area after healing.
Symptoms of piercing rejection
more of the jewelry becoming visible on the outside of the piercing. the piercing remaining sore, red, irritated, or dry after the first few days. the jewelry becoming visible under the skin. the piercing hole appearing to be getting larger.
The quickest way to heal your new piercing is to leave it alone. If you are twisting your jewelry or touching your piercing too often, you can actually disrupt scabs and clots that are forming, which are the body's way of healing an open wound.
Don't remove your jewelry.
“If it's an allergic reaction to the material, you should definitely have it removed, but if it's just slightly infected, you should leave the jewelry in and treat it so that the piercing doesn't close with bacteria inside.
The idea of twisting/moving your new piercing daily & doing this frequently throughout the day is outdated & rarely helps the area to heal nicely, in most cases it causes soreness, redness or swelling which leads to longer healing times & can lead to infection.
It's best to leave it in unless a doctor says otherwise because the hole can close up and trap bacteria or pus inside. Don't try to squeeze the pus out either because you may introduce more bacteria into the piercing site.
A piercing may not heal as fast if it gets infected or irritated or if scar tissue forms. You may need to see your doctor if your piercing does not seem to be healing.
This is an absolutely normal process of a new piercing and does not necessarily mean there is something wrong with it. It is also normal to experience a whitish to yellowish secretion coming from the piercing. This is called sebum, which is just your body's natural secretion and what creates crust on the jewelry.
You cannot get rid of a keloid on your own and it won't go away like other piercing bumps, even if you remove the jewellery.
Piercing bumps occur when the body's immune system responds to the wound and initiates the healing response. This response leads to inflammation, which is what causes the bump. A person may notice bleeding, bruising, and some swelling at the site of the piercing in the first few weeks after getting it.