FDA recalls certain tattoo inks

FDA says there is some contaminated ink being used in South Florida tattoo parlors.

He believes that the contamination was reported in a stolen batch of inks, and the company has halted production for the time being. This is a portion of a Q&A from the FDA: FDA has tested unopened bottles of these inks and found contamination with a human pathogen, Mycobacterium chelonae, as well as Microbacterium organisms, and the molds Cryptococcus albidus and members of the Penicillium genus.

The contaminated products bear a circular logo with the name of the manufacturer “A Thousand Virgins”, and centered within the circle are G1, G2 or G3, indicating the particular shade of grey wash ink. The bottles containing those inks have January 2016 mentioned as expiry date.

It can stay concentrated in the site of injection or it can spread throughout the body.

Tattoo products with the same lot number manufactured by A Thousand Virgins may still be available online and may be marketed by other distributors.

“Almost everybody these days has a tattoo, and nobody is talking about the side effects of ink deposits”, said senior author Dr. Andreas Luch of the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment in Berlin. If the infection is really bad, the person could also suffer swollen or tender lymph nodes.

Buzzfeed reports that a new brand of temporary tattoos was recently launched, and the technology behind it uses fruit-based ink that still provides a look and feel of a real tattoo, but only lasts around 2 weeks.

The infection requires extensive treatment, and some can even result to life-threatening complication such as infection of the blood, or sepsis.

Officials said anyone receiving a tattoo is at risk for infection, but people with heart trouble, diabetes or have compromised immune systems are particularly susceptible. Anyone who has purchased any of these items, are advised to dispose them properly.

Ask client to contact you in case he experiences any of the adverse reactions.

People can tell the FDA about infected tattoos through the agency’s website or by calling 1-800-332-1088 to request a pre-addressed, postage-paid form.