Technical and Clinical Complications of Cosmetic Tattooing

Cosmetic tattooing and medical tattooing of the face share basic principles and to some degree types and spectrum of technical and clinical complications known from decorative tattooing of other parts of the body. Cosmetic tattoos recently have grown exponentially in popularity in industrialized countries all over the world. The different complications and their clinical symptoms, pathophysiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention are analyzed versus culprit pigments and updated. Eyeliner tattooing is associated with special complications because of the subtle anatomy and the closeness to the eye, and the risk of meibomian gland damage. The spectrum of cosmetic tattoo complications includes early-onset complications (infections particularly with herpes simplex, healing issues, aesthetic and technical mistakes with regret), and late-onset complications (color fading and color shift, "blowout" pigment escape to surrounding skin, papules, nodules, granulomas associated with sarcoidosis, allergic reactions in lip tattoos with lichenoid dermatitis, eye irritation, and fibrosis and scaring especially after microblading); miscellaneous complications include severe burn sensation in tattoos during magnetic resonance imaging later in life. Corneal tattooing and subconjunctival/episcleral tattooing performed on medical indication by ophthalmologists, and for decoration by tattooists carry special risk of intraocular complications. It is recommended for the purpose of research harmonization that terms and diagnostic classification of tattoo adverse events follow the system introduced by the Tattoo Clinic of Copenhagen and already accepted in specialized tattoo clinics in other centers.