Infected ears after piercing

[rathlin]

I had my earlobes pierced last Saturday (one hole in each ear) and they appear to be infected (swollen, throbbing, red) - not very pleasant looking. I was using antiseptic wound wash on them but that doesn't seem to have helped. Today I've started bathing them in saline - is there anything else I should do e.g. remove earrings, go and see doctor etc? I wasn't sure if I would need antibiotics or if keeping the earrings in is exacerbating the problem.

You could be allergic to the earrings, in which case leaving them in will only exacerbate the problem (bitter experience).
IMHO I would take them out and see if the infection goes down in a day or two and if not see your GP
FWIW, I had my ears pierced several times and this happened every time (infection spreading through my neck etc, not pleasant). However, i had them pierced last year with titanium earrings and have had no problems whatsoever. I am allergic to most metals so it could be something similar with you.

I had this too many moons ago - I would remove the earrings and give them a good clean in surgical spirit, wash your lobes in TCP twice a day and if it gets worse see your GP.

I used surgical spirit twice a day on all my piercings - on blobs of cotton wool, really soaked so it gets all round the piercing and twirl the earring or whatever as you clean it.

What did you have them pierced with? Gold or solid silver sleepers usually best but I think if you have a nickel allergy that might still be a problem with gold? You definitely shouldn't have base metal in a new piercing. Check that the butterfly backs are hallmarked too.

A bit of redness / soreness and a small amount of pus is fairly normal but if your earlobes are swollen and really weepy then you should definitely pop to the doc.

Where did you have them pierced? I'd always recommend going to a proper piercing studio rather than having them done with a gun at Claire's or whatever. More expensive but more likely to be done properly. What kind of aftercare advice were you given?