Forum for Nordic Dermato-Venereology Nr 4, 2019 | Seite 6

Nicolas Kluger, Laurent Misery, Sophie Seité and Charles Taieb – Tattoos and body-piercings among French teenagers
Table II. Characteristics of the study population for tattoos
Total
n = 175
Male
n = 109
Female
n = 66
18 (10.3)
14 (12.8)
4 (6.1)
Prevalence by sex, n (%)
Smoking
Without tattoos
27 (17.2)
19 (20)
8 (12.9)
With tattoo(s)
5 (27.8)
3 (21.4)
2 (50)
Hesitations before the first tattoo, n (%)
Not at all
7 (38.9)
4 (28.6)
3 (75)
A bit
8 (44.4)
7 (50)
1 (25)
A lot
3 (16.7)
3 (21.4)
0 (0)
Regrets
No regrets
1 (5.6)
1 (7.1)
0 (0)
Tattoo decision-making: alone or discussion with family or friends b , n (%)
Alone
5 (27.8)
4 (28.5)
1 (25)
Parents
7 (38.9)
5 (35.7)
2 (50)
Family
6 (33.3)
6 (42.8)
0 (0)
Friends
3 (16.7)
2 (14.3)
1 (25)
Significant other
2 (11.1)
1 (7.1)
1 (25)
Self-reported motivations for getting tattooed, n (%)
Body embellishment
5 (27.8)
3 (21.4)
2 (50)
Individuality, distinction
5 (27.8)
4 (28.6)
1 (25)
Body appropriation
3 (16.7)
3 (21.4)
0 (0)
Eroticism, sexuality
4 (22.2)
4 (28.6)
0 (0)
Commitment
0 (0)
0 (0)
0 (0)
Tradition, culture
0 (0)
0 (0)
0 (0)
Endurance/stamina
2 (11)
2 (14.3)
0 (0)
No reason
5 (27.8)
3 (21.4)
2 (50)
Quality of life SF-12, mean±SD
Tattoo(s)
Physical composite score
51.1±5.9
Mental composite score
42.6±6.8
No tattoes (ref)
Physical composite score
55.2±6.8
Mental composite score
41.2±10.1
Self-reported side-effects, n (%)
No
8 (44.4)
5 (35.7)
3 (75)
Yes, once
4 (22.2)
6 (42.8)
1 (25)
Yes, waxing and waning
1 (5.5)
1 (7.1)
0 (0)
Yes, persistent
2 (22.2)
2 (14.3)
0 (0)
Healing problems
5 (50)
5 (55.5)
0 (0)
Irritation
5 (50)
5 (55.5)
0 (0)
Infection
2 (20)
2 (22.2)
0 (0)
Itch
3 (30)
2 (22.2)
1
T attoes
p-
value a
NS
NS
NS
-
-
-
NS
NS
NS
NS
0.02
NS
NS
NS
NS
-
-
NS
NS
NS*
NS*
NS
-
-
-
-
-
-
NS
Fischer’s exact test or Student’s t-test.
Total over 100% as respondents could give several answers.
*Tattoes compared to No tattoes.
NS: not significant.
a
b
ment of the body (50%), expression of individuality (22.7%)
and reclaiming her/his own body, sexuality or no reason
(13.6% each). Teenagers self-reported complications in 40.9%,
mostly infection (77.8% of the complications).
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
15 years old 16 years old 17 years old 18 years old
Fig. 1. Prevalence of tattoos by age in the current study.
116
D ermato -V enereology in the N ordic C ountries
Of the respondents 10.3% had tattoo(s) (girls
6.1%, boys 12.8%) (Table II, Fig. 1). Median
age at tattooing was 16.5 years. Tattooed teen-
agers tended to smoke (27% vs 17.2%, p > 0.05).
Overall, smoking prevalence by group was as
follows: teenagers with only BP (50%) > both
tattoo(s) and BP (42.8%) > with only tattoos
(18.2%) > without any BP and tattoos (14.9%).
Parents were involved in the decision in 38.9%,
and family members in 33.3%. Of those with
tattoos, 61.1% hesitated before their first tattoo.
Only 5.6% had regrets. Motivation included
embellishment of the body, individuality or no
reason (27.8%), and sexuality (22.2%). Teenag-
ers self-reported complications in 55% of cases,
including healing issues and local irritation
(50%) and itch (30%). Physical and mental com-
posite score were comparable whether teenagers
had BP/tattoos or none.
D iscussion
The prevalence of BP was lower compared with
previous studies (4), while the prevalence of
tattoos was rather similar to the current pub-
lished data (3). Girls tended to favour BP, while
boys favoured tattoos. Smoking was yet again
strongly associated with BP with or without
tattoos (5). Acknowledging the limits of our
study (a rather small but representative sample
of the general population), it provides a recent-
ly updated snapshot of French teenagers with
BP and tattoos. These results will be useful for
prevention and educational purposes among
the public and to help parents and health pro-
fessionals to better advise adolescents about the
risks of tattooing and BP.
R eferences
1. Kluger N, Misery L, Seité S, Taieb C. Tattooing: a national survey
in the general population of France. J Am Acad Dermatol 2019;
81: 607–610.
2. Kluger N, Misery L, Seité S, Taieb C. Body piercing: a national
survey in France. Dermatology 2019; 235: 71–78.
3. Kluger N. Epidemiology of tattoos in industrialized countries. Curr
Probl Dermatol 2015; 48: 6–20.
4. Cegolon L, Mastrangelo G, Mazzoleni F, Majori S, Baldovin T, Xodo
C; VAHP Working Group. Body art in 4,277 Italian secondary school
adolescents: prevalence and associations with personal and family
characteristics. Fam Med 2010; 42: 273–279.
5. Guéguen N. Tattoo, piercing, and adolescent tobacco consumption.
Int J Adolesc Med Health 2013; 25: 87–89.
Forum for Nord Derm Ven 2019, Vol. 24, No. 4