Are piercing guns safe? Serious answers please*?

Question

I recentley had my ears done with a piercing gun at claires and I have since then heard terrible things about doing this....Because they cant be properly cleaned...I am wondering if the risk is high for getting HIV/Hepatitis from getting your ears done with a piercing gun??? it really scared me and makes me want to get tested just to be on the safe side

Answer 1

Are piercing guns safe? Unfortunately there have been no FDA or Department of Health and Safety guidelines set for the companies who do this piercing. I checked about 15 and found that all of them used cleaning solutions which do not kill the Hepatitis C virus. For this reason I say NO they are not safe. Some change the whole piercing mechanism but they still clean them in the weak solution. To clean or autoclave (what is needed to remove tissue and blood throughly) one must use bleach in a 12% solution for HepC. Autoclave is the safest. Just as your dentist office is a risky place if the autoclave is not a good one. Anywhere there is a likely exchange of tissue or blood there exists the risk for contamination. I hope this is serious enough...lol

Answer 2

depends on whether they used the reusable one that takes a cartridge or if they used a one time use gun that is becoming common. Besides the risk of infection being higher with a reused gun I find that the piercing just isnt as healthy as one done by a professional piercer. The gun causes blunt force trauma to the area its piercing which is never good for anyone. At an outlet like claires I doubt you have to worry about terrible life altering infections...their main clientel are children after all. Sure kids can carry diseases too...but its much less likely.

Answer 3

many folks clean their guns properly. my son was tested for hcv after getting his ears peirced and he did not have hcv.

*for those who claim it is comepletly safe, it is NOT 100% risk free- HCV the blood borne virus that has infected over 5 million in the United States alone can be passed using contaminated equipment-NOT just needles. One small speck of dried blood is all it takes to become infected.....and even though the needles have been changed, there could still be blood on the gun!
hcv can take a decade or more before a person shows symptoms. my suggestion to anyone getting a piercing, to follow up after three months with an HCV test, this includes everyone who has ever had anything pierced!

Answer 4

You shouldn't worry about it. I got mine pierced at Clarie's too. I had researched extensively before I got mine. They are the largest company worldwide for piercing. (like 80 million!) If there's any problems, it should be made public by now.

The new kind of piercing guns they used at Clarie's does not contain needles. They use the earrings that you have chosen on the rack as the "bullets". That's why you can't go fancy at first. They arm the gun with those earrings and shot them right in your ear lobes. So the gun has never actually touched your blood. The protective barrier at the front of the gun is discarded after every use.

They also made me signed a lot of things. So if there's really any problem, they can trace the customer back and get the problem contained immediately.

I'd say it's safe.

My friend had her ear pierced "old school". It was disgusting!! Her mom rubbed her ears with ginger until it's really hot and numb. Then use her hands to force the earrings in! Of course the ginger didn't help and it hurt like hell. I prefer the gun.

Answer 5

No one would use a piercing gun if they couldn't be cleaned properly. Of course they can. In about 4 weeks, ask your doctor to test you for HIV/Hepatitis if you like. I'm sure Claire's has safe equipment and cleans all their equipment before and after each client.

Answer 6

i had mine done a few times when i was younger and there's nothing wrong with me. They can be cleaned, the place i went to sent them out to clean them as well as cleaning them first "in house" but now a days they use new equipment every time.
now most places "thread" you manually if you don't like the guns

Answer 7

I believe they're relatively 'safe', but they can damage the inside of whatever it is they're piercing (such as cartilage). For that reason, it's safer to have it done manually, like at a professional tattoo parlor.

Why do you think they can't be properly cleaned? I don't think that's accurate.

Answer 8

With all due respects Ma'am, you should have this question asked first or taken a professional advise before going for that gun stuff. God knows what type of people turn up where you were gunned down.
Please go to your personal physician and have a session.

Answer 9

I took my daughter to have her ears pierced at Claire's too. Believe me, it is safe. They use a different, sterile, wrapped needle every time they pierce. They unwrapped it right in front of me.

Answer 10

You shouldn't put any extra holes in your body, it will definitely damage the part you're putting it in.