%0 Journal Article
%T The Consequences of Tongue Piercing on Oral and Periodontal Tissues
%A Ioannis Plastargias
%A Dimitra Sakellari
%J ISRN Dentistry
%D 2014
%R 10.1155/2014/876510
%X This paper is discussing the potential consequences that may arise by the implementation of piercing in the oral cavity and is also categorizing the consequences according to their extent and severity. Furthermore, this paper is reviewing some possible oral hygiene methods that can prove to be auxiliary in decreasing the potential complications arising from oral piercing. This literature review is based on articles published from 1985 to 2012. 1. Introduction Body piercing involves the puncturing of specific places of the body in which metallic adornments are installed. Piercing in the oral cavity has gained a rapid interest among the youth in the western world [1]. This interest may be attributed to several contributing factors. According to Kustner et al., the principal reason is the zest of the youth for being in style and in fashion. Other factors may include religion, traditional issues, rituals, or the feeling of being a member of a social group or even the feeling of superiority above the other members of the social ¡°caste¡± [2]. As stated by Stirn et al., self-expression, expression of independence of spirit, amelioration of the body and of sensuality [3¨C5], and daring are contributing factors as well [6]. In their study it is also mentioned that oral piercing has been speculated to have healing results on depression. As a result it is postulated that the traumatic psychological events are correlative to piercing [3]. It has also been presented in studies that the practice of oral piercing is perceived as an aloof and bizarre behavioral pattern by society. This is a reason why the majority of patients who present to the dental office and use to wear piercings often take them off before the clinical session [7]. As a result, edema of oral soft tissues may be attributed to preexisting oral piercing that cannot be seen by the dentist though [8]. The overall purpose of this paper is to review the potential complications caused by oral piercings as they are analyzed in the literature. This paper also suggests some ways of improving the oral hygiene of the people who wear piercings and it suggests some methods of ameliorating the negative consequences of piercings. 2. General Literature Data on Oral Piercings There are some popular oral piercing spots: it is a general rule that the most common form of piercing is the barbell type piercing and the mostly pierced oral site is the tongue [9]. It has been reported that the tongue is often pierced in the midline and more specifically in the median lingual sulcus, albeit some piercings are performed on the
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn.dentistry/2014/876510/