Management of Tattoos in the Operative Field

Tenna, Stefania; Femmine, Pietro Francesco Delle; Filoni, Angela; Cagli, Barbara; Brunetti, Beniamino; Persichetti, Paolo

doi:10.1097/sap.0b013e31824ca564

Cited by 1 publication

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“…In this way, the tattoo can be viewed as an anatomical structure, in which the interface between the tattoo and normal skin is used to conceal the surgical incision and meet the need for patient satisfaction. 32,33 These situations often require a modification of incision lines, as well as skin pattern removal, in order to prevent tattoo excision ( Figure 11). …”

Section: Making the Incision At The Margin Of The Tattoomentioning

confidence: 99%

Tattoo preservation during surgical procedures

Tenna¹,

Femmine²,

Pendolino³

et al. 2014

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In recent years, the number of people getting tattoos has continued to increase. Tattoos are much more than cultural fads and cosmetic complements, and nowadays often represent events that express the patient's personality without words. The presence of a tattoo in the surgical field may be a problem for both the patient and the surgeon. However, the relevant literature is mostly based on complications related to application of tattoos or methods used to remove them. To date, few reports have focused on the importance of preserving a tattoo during a surgical procedure, and no organized studies could be found. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the range of solutions that surgeons can use to preserve tattoos during surgery. A PubMed database search was done to assess other surgeons' experience. The terms "tattoo" in combination with "incision", "surgery", "surgical", or "operative" were used as key words. Following a review of the literature, photographs of patients presenting with a tattoo in the last 5 years at University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome were identified in order to determine the frequency of patients presenting with tattoos in our department. The patients were classified according to sex, age, type of surgery, number of tattoos, and tattoo location. Specific requests to preserve tattoos were recorded. Finally, an algorithm of treatment according to tattoo dimension and location is proposed. Knowledge of all the strategies available for saving tattoos is important for plastic and cosmetic surgeons. If a tattooed area needs to be operated on, surgeons should attempt, when possible, to avoid altering the tattoo in order to maximize the final cosmetic result.

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Section: Making the Incision At The Margin Of The Tattoomentioning

confidence: 99%