Cartilage healing weirdness?

Question

I got my cartilage pierced about 4 months ago. It refused to heal with the piercing studs I had in--they always were pulling and wouldn't settle. I bought some sterling silver hoops and put them in. Almost immediately, they right ear (which seemed worse most of the time) developed a weird bump and was hurting a lot. I cleaned both ears with solution and the bump got crusty and then just went away, leaving the piercing totally healed. Now the same thing is happening on the left side. I have had many piercings and have never had anything like this before. What is it?

Answer 1

Do NOT tell me you got this done with a gun, that could be your problem right there!
Instead of the saline solution wash with Dial antibacterial soap. Make sure you are able to get it in through the piercing, and alsoo make sure that you get it all off. Also, after washing, dry (softly) with a Q-tip. Then another good thing to do is a sea salt soak.
This is from BME

Soaking an angry or new piercing in warm saltwater is one of the best things you can do for it. Many use saltwater as their only cleanser. Hot, it's a natural astringent and can be helpful in drawing out infection and pus.
Most piercers prefer non-iodized sea salt, which can be found in most health-food stores. Rock salt is of higher purity than sea-salt which can contain many minerals and other substances.
Some people have found that normal table salt can be an effective substitute. Epsom salts are magnesium sulfate, not sodium chloride, and should not be used.
The most common mix is ¼ teaspoon salt per 8oz (250ml or 1 cup) of distilled warm water. When mixed correctly the solution should taste as salty as your tears, and be about as hot as a drinkable cup of coffee.
To soak your piercing, invert a disposable cup (or shot glass) of water over the piercing and soak for 5-10 minutes. When finished soaking, it is extremely important to rinse piercing with a brand new Q-tip and cold water to remove discharge both on and around piercing and jewelry.
You can also make hot compresses with disposable paper towels or cotton balls for difficult soaking sites (i.e. inner ear or nostril piercings). DO NOT use washcloths.
Bathtub soaks are great for all piercings when done in a freshly cleaned tub with 2-3 cups of sea salt in warm water.


Hope this helps!
And please, if this was done with a gun, don't do that again and go to a professional piercer!

Answer 2

I would say wait for it to heal up. I have 3 cartilage piercings, and things can go wrong with it very easily. As for the bump on it, keep cleaning it until it completely goes away, because that could be a sign of infection

Answer 3

Cartilage takes SIX months to OVER a year to fully heal. 4 months isn't nearly enough.

Changing jewelry before the piercing is healed opens you up to risk of infection, reverting your healing, irritating your piercing and causing it to reject.

Also, getting cartilage pierced with a gun is the worst thing you can do next to self piercing it. Guns cause blunt force trauma to your body and have a tendancy to shatter the cartilage because of it. Also, the little sub-quality studs used in them are not the proper gauge or length to accomodate a healing cartilage piercing. On top of that, gun piercers are trained on teddy bears and cardboard ears and have no anatomical or cross contamination training to speak of. Plus, the "ear care solution" is full of Benzalkoniumchloride (BZK), which is a breeding ground for pseudomoneous bacteria that eat and liqify cartilage.

Also, sterling silver is chock full of nickel, which causes your skin to turn green and irritates the bejeebies out of healing piercings.

Take out the piercing, let it heal up for a few months, then go to a professional piercer and let them pierce you with proper equipment and jewelry.

Answer 4

when i got my cartilage pierced i got it done with a hoop and my hoop wouldn't allow the ear to heal. when i got a bar it healed quickly. i don't know. just keep putting the cleaning solution on it and try not to sleep on that ear.

Answer 5

my ex got bumps on his ears cept they didnt go away.... those were called keyloids... caused from friction... so... becarful of that I guess... but if they went away... im sure it was just a secreation of like ear cheese or something... why be worried

Answer 6

im still waiting on my ears to heal. i hope you got it done with a needle and not a gun!

Answer 7

Try sea salt soaks. Cartilage is a bugger to heal, and what you are experiencing is most likely a hypertrophic scar: http://wiki.bmezine.com/index.php/Hypertrophic_Scarring

Try this: http://wiki.bmezine.com/index.php/Chamomile_Teabag_Compresses

or this: http://wiki.bmezine.com/index.php/Salt_Soaks