(Seychelles News Agency) - More hygiene, less tissue trauma and shorter healing time are some benefits people can have while having their piercing done at one of Seychelles' newly opened outlets.

Although needles have been used on rare occasions, in Seychelles for many decades, it has been common practice for piercing to be done through the use of piercing guns. This could range from a baby girl's first ear piercing to an adult's nose piercing. 

Despite the fact that a piercing is done with a gun, it can have more risks than using needles.

Former Miss Seychelles and owner of the newly opened 'Piercing Spot Sey', Sherlyn Furneau, shared with SNA some of the benefits of choosing a needle over a gun piercing.

"One of the biggest benefits is that needles are single-use. A person does not risk getting another person's body fluid in their new piercing because of this. Piercing guns are made out of plastic making it harder to properly sterilise them. Secondly, believe it or not, needle piercings are less painful. Studs used in the guns have blunt tips making it more difficult and more painful to pierce the skin," said Furneau.

She also outlined that needles provide a piercer with a more precise angle to undertake a client's request and due to needles being sharp, they cause less trauma to the area being pierced. 

The former Miss Seychelles in her newly opened 'Piercing Spot Sey.' (Sherlyn Furneau) Photo License: All Rights Reserved

"The force and pressure that come with the use of a piercing gun can shatter cartilage, causing longer healing time and leaving more scars. With the stud and butterfly fitting too tight due to this pressure, the new piercing does not have enough room to accommodate for swelling which can result in complications later on," said Furneau.

Talking about why she chose to start this business, Furneau shared that "I have always been a fan of piercings, and I have quite a few myself, but I've always had to travel to have them done safely."

"I wanted to bring home a better piercing experience for other piercing lovers like myself. I went and got certified in London at an academy to ensure that I got the proper training to do so. Knowing the proper techniques, how to avoid hitting nerves and hygiene is very important when doing a piercing," said Furneau.

Located in Providence, Piercing Spot Sey opened in November 2022 and offers clients a wide range of piercing options from an array of ear piercings to navel, nipples, eyebrow, lips, and nose piercings.

Dangers of piercings remain, says medical professional

Dr. Miodrag Todorovic, the director of Panafricare Clinic at Providence, warns that any piercing is an attack on the body, and if the material is not sterilised then spreading bacterial or viral infection is possible.

"I have seen here in the clinic after piercing that the wounds get infected though they are not major infections. Viral diseases are more serious - HIV, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C tend to spread, and in Seychelles, there are other viruses and these are conditions that can be spread with the gun. With a sterile needle, not," he said.

Todorovic believes that in Seychelles there is a need to have public health control over piercing practices.

"Public Health needs to look everywhere where there is a risk for the public. They check restaurants meticulously but no check is done on people who are doing cosmetic needling on the face, some invasive procedures, and are not entitled to do - doing piercings, or tattoos. Even if these procedures are minimally invasive, there is still a risk of infection. These people need to be registered and monitored," he concluded.