As Medical Tattoos gain popularity, Guidelines should establish Standards and Consistency
PHILADELPHIA -- Medical tattoos, a permanent bodily mark used to indicate the illnesses or allergies an individual has, are gaining momentum and popularity. However, a review of medical literature indicates a lack of established guidelines in the medical community on how medical tattoos should be administered and effectively used, according to an expert today at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 21st Annual Meeting & Clinical Congress in Philadelphia.
Medical jewelry, primarily necklaces and bracelets, has traditionally been worn by patients to indicate they have a particular medical condition, such as diabetes, heart disease or high blood pressure. This identification is crucial should a medical emergency occur. In patients with diabetes, for example, emergency personnel know that one of the first steps with an unresponsive subject is to check their blood sugar level and, if it is found to be low, to immediately treat with glucose. In such emergencies, medical jewelry is an effective tool because first responders have been trained to know where to look for it and what the various engraved symbols mean.
However, as medical tattoos are being used more and more by patients to replace medical jewelry, no appropriate medical standards exist to regulate them, according to Dr. Saleh Aldasouqi, FACE, ECNU.
“The medical community, and particularly endocrinologists as diabetes experts, should establish guidelines regarding medical tattoos,” said Dr. Aldasouqi. “Specifically, patients who want a medical tattoo need guidance on how to get it safely, where it should be located on their body and what it should look like.”
One concern that guidelines should address for patients with diabetes is to stress the importance of having their blood glucose and A1C levels in a normal range prior to getting a tattoo. This is an important step in reducing the risk of poor healing or infection. Guidelines also should address the standards of tattoo administration, including the use of sterile tools to prevent complications such as local skin infection and transmission of communicable infections. But perhaps most importantly, according to Dr. Aldasouqi, is the need to establish a consistent bodily location and appearance for medical tattoos so medical personnel can be properly trained to respond to this emerging form of identification.
“Each minute and each second will count, as far as survival is concerned, for a patient in a diabetic coma,” said Dr. Aldasouqi. “Accordingly, the medical community must take seriously the opportunity and responsibility to establish medical tattoo guidelines.”
Fuente: The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE)
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