6 year old piercing infected-advice needed.

[Fedupsequin]

DD complained her earring was itching her,I’ve taken it out and it’s clearly infected-red, slightly swollen and some pus. It’s not a new piercing, it was done six years ago. I’ve cleaned it with salt water but everything i’m reading says to leave the earring in-the way it looks I think her ear will ‘swallow’ any jewellery but I don’t want to trap the infection. Does anybody have any advice/experience, please?

Go to a good piercing studio - a proper specialist one, not Claire’s Accessories is anywhere that pierces with a gun - and ask their advice. They are really experienced with this kind of thing.

NHS advice is see a doctor for antibiotics and leave it in unless the Dr advises otherwise https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/infected-piercings/

Have you got any new earrings? It could be that the back has moved and become too tight possibly? Or hair has wrapped round it and irritated her ear?
Use some ice on her ear to bring the swelling down. 30 seconds at a time if she can cope with it. Repeat as many times as she'll allow but if it distresses her, maybe just a cold towel instead.
Keep up with the salt water as much as you can, keep the earring in but with the back on the first catch rather than tightening.
Clean any earrings throughly with boiled then cooled salt water to sterilise them, and possibly get a new pair to minimise any germ spreading back into the ear.
My DDs ears took a while to heal (but was a new piercing so bit different) but the salt water worked much better than any solution I tried.

Get a proper piercing saline solution that you can mist on, do that three times a day and see how you go in a day or two. It may not be infected - piercings can be very gunky when irritated

My daughter had a new piercing that got really infected - I read the same as you and so kept the earring in. I sprayed it with antiseptic wound spray twice a day and wiped it gently with cotton wool pads. It was healed in about a week. It was very red with green stuff coming out. I did consider the dr but as it was healing and the redness reducing she was fine without antibiotics.

It may not be infected infected, so don’t panic.

I mean it seems unlikely in a healed piercing.

What kind of jewellery was in there? I’m wondering if it’s a reaction/irritation to the type of metal.

Keep scrupulously clean. Lather up with soap and blast with the shower head. I’m a big fan of surgical spirit for piercings too, even though piercers say saline only!

Take it out and let it heal up until she's old enough to decide for herself whether she wants to puncture holes in her body.

LOL, the piercing is six years old, not the child.

Maybe you've not read The OP. She doesn't actually say how old her dd js. She may be 18.

Get some saline spray from Amazon. Keep it clean and spray it a couple of times a day.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/NeilMed-NeilCleanse-Piercing-Aftercare-Fluid/dp/B00TZUJW6O/ref=mp_s_a_1_9?keywords=saline+solution+piercing&qid=1683926679&sr=8-9

Thank you all so much for your advice! She’s got a different earring in it now and we’ll keep up with salt baths and saline spray. I thought that keeping the earring in was what we needed to do but she didn’t agree and it made me doubt myself.

@Jellycats4life that’s what I’m thinking/hoping. She had a Primark stud in it, I’ve given her a sterling set of mine for now but will buy some lightweight gold hoops tomorrow from the jeweller so there’s less chance of irritation from the metal and also of it being swallowed.

Stainless steel is the safest.
Tell her not to touch it or fiddle with it.
Warm salt water and dry thoughly afterwards.
She won't need antibiotics unless she gets a temperature and swollen glands.

You might find implant grade titanium jewellery better when healing if there’s a slight infection. That’s the best thing to use in fresh piercings to heal well. A hoop may also irritate it a little because they move around. I’d treat it like a fresh piercing- go to a piercing studio with her and ask if they could give you an earring suited to a new piercing (flat back titanium) which should be long enough to accommodate any swelling.

@Redebs @SaltanVinegar thank you, will look at stainless and titanium. Good point about the hoops moving too.

A Primark stud? That’ll do it! Definitely sounds like a reaction rather than an infection. Agree titanium is best but gold or surgical steel is fine for most people.

A primark stud?! No wonder.