So, this week, I got on the bus to work, and picked up a copy of the Toronto Metro to read.  I found an interesting article about a tattoo studio in Mississauga (the city next to Toronto) that had recently been inspected by Peel Public Health.  The article I read is here.
There were two problems with the inspection.  The first is that the inspection itself was WAY over due.  It was the first one in four years - the law requires an inspection every year for tattoo and piercing businesses.
The second issue was even more of a problem.  The studio had been keeping few records of the maintenance of their sterilization equipment. 
The article in The Toronto Star (which is far more sensationalist than I would have expected of that paper) points out that these records should be updated monthly and only 11 tests had been carried out in the last four years.

Now, don't get me wrong.  I am ALL about keeping it clean.  I only use disposable tubes, because it removes any issues with sterilization.  All my needles come pre-sterilized on bars, and are disposed of in a proper sharps container after use.  I cover everything, and all coverings are disposed of after each tattoo.  If the law says do the tests, you gotta do the tests, you know?

Having said this, I was frustrated with the ignorance shown in the articles.  The Toronto Star article's headline was as follows:

3,000 WARNED OF HIV RISK AT TATTOO SHOP

Let's be clear - Nobody said that they found any problem with the equipment.  Peel Public Health has issued a warning to anyone tattooed between March 2005 and February 2009 to go and get tested for HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C.  Sure, go and get tested.  But it's a very low risk.  To be fair to them, Peel Public Health did say that it was a very low risk, and that the warning was just a precautionary measure.  And that's all fine.  But I'm saddened by the media response, reinforcing old, worn out stereotypes.

The tattoo industry is growing, and now more than ever, it has a responsibility to provide clean, sanitary conditions for its clients.  I'm not going to get tattooed anywhere where I'm not 100% sure it's clean, and I wouldn't expect anyone else to.
Moonshin Tattoo needs to clean up its act, and it is totally responsible for getting its equipment tested. 
But we could do without papers like the Toronto Star taking a story like this and turning it into something that spreads fear.
The facts are rather surprising.  The CDC (Center for Disease Control) in the United States reports "no cases of HIV transmission through tattooing" anywhere in the country since it began tracking such data in 1985! There have, however, been at least 7 cases of HIV infection transmitted through dentistry.  I'm not saying that to spread fear about dentists, just that it's interesting that tattoo studios get the bad rep for this even though there is little ground for that.

As for Hepatitis, there is some history of infections from tattoo studios.  www.tattooartist.com had this to say of their research into the CDC statistics:
"Of the 13,387 annual cases of hepatitis detailed in the most recent CDC report, 12 are associated with tattoo studios. By comparison, 43 cases...are associated with dental offices"

Nobody is ruling out the risk of infection.  If equipment is not sterilized, if pigments are not disposed of after each client, if surfaces are not protected and the covering disposed of, surfaces sterilized, hands gloved and washed and gloved and washed; all precautions taken, then it is possible that HIV and Hepatitis can be spread through the practice of tattooing.

I'll be honest.  I just wish that people wouldn't assume things.  All else aside, it makes them look stupid.
Moonshin Tattoo is considering legal action against Peel Public Health for defamation.  I'm not sure that this is a good idea, since it is their fault they didn't keep the records.  Let's just hope some people have learned some lessons from all of this.

Also, the next person that shows me a copy of that article (and a lot of people did last week) will get the entire CDC HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report: Estimated incidence of AIDS and deaths of persons with AIDS, adjusted for delays in reporting, by quarter-year of diagnosis/death, United States, January 1985 through June 2007 tattooed on their arm so they can read the actual statistics whenever the need arises.

I'm going to bed now.  Goodnight.

4 Comments