The Sudden Rise of Cosmetic and Medical Tattoos on All Continents.

Abstract

Cosmetic tattooing dedicated to beautifying the normal anatomy such as the eyebrows, the eyelines, or the lips is in a remarkable growth all over the world. Medical tattooing with reconstruction of the areola and the nipple after breast surgery, correction of the lost color of vitiligo and scars is a spin-off, which has made tattooing cross the barrier and become accepted and used in clinics and hospitals in service of the quality of life of patients. The last years have seen a major development of machinery, inks, techniques, experiences, and services. The overwhelming rise of the activity created by client pressure and business opportunity, however, also has its cons: amateur work and even malpractice. The development is driven by elite technicians, but competence is little transparent to clients, and there is no distinct authoritative recognition of practitioners based on a recognized educational curriculum. National regulations of the industry are highly variable and scattered. Some countries have no restriction and in others cosmetic tattoos shall be performed by medical doctors. The challenge of the coming decades is to parallel the success of the industry with quality assurance to better control practices and safeguard clients, and the patients.