The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of life-style practices in adolescents and their association with nickel allergy. Upper secondary school pupils (n = 4,376; 15-23 years) were patch-tested for nickel aller-gy, follow-ing completion of a questionnaire (answered by 6,095). Almost 86% girls and 21% of boys reported piercing. More girls (6%) than boys (3%) had a tattoo. Twenty-si...

Male bed bugs pierce females through the body wall and inseminate directly into the body cavity. It has previously been shown that such traumatic insemination carries costs for females, and sexual conflict regarding the mode of insemination should thus propel male-female coevolution. Since males accumulate sexually antagonistic adaptations, females should evolve counter-adaptations that efficie...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS The purpose of this systematic review was to critically analyze infectious complications and treatment following transcartilaginous ear piercing. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE Pubmed database. REVIEW METHODS A MEDLINE PubMed database search using free text, including "ear chondritis," "ear perichondritis," "ear cartilage piercing," and "auricle piercing," yielded 483 titles. Ba...

BACKGROUND This study examines the underlying characteristics of adolescents attending Italian secondary school who expressed indifference towards or no interest at all in body art. METHODS A convenience sample of 4,277 secondary school students from the North Eastern Italy were surveyed with a self-reported questionnaire collecting extensive socio-demographic information. Multivariable logis...

BACKGROUND The practice of tattooing and piercing has expanded in western society. In order to verify young adults' knowledge of the risk and practices related to body art, an investigation was conducted among freshmen of the University of Bari in the region of Apulia, Italy. METHODS The study was carried out in the Academic Year 2009-2010 through an anonymous self-administered written questi...

Abstract Background In the last decades, body art practices such as tattooing and piercing have known an increasing popularity, mainly in young people. These procedures are associated with infectious non-infectious health risks. The aim of this multicenter study was to evaluate knowledge risks related among undergraduate students from ten Italian universities. Methods A cross-sectional performe...