So it appears that singer Rihanna, famous for her music and her domestic abuse-ridden relationship with fellow R&B star Chris Brown, wants to become famous for her visual art as well.  She was recently seen in a New York City tattoo parlor tattooing employees and the owner of the establisment.  Not having a licence to stick pigment-laden needles into people’s skin might cost Rihanna and the tattoo joint in fines levied by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.  Here is the full story from Rolling Stone.

So what’s the issue with unlicensed people performing tattoos?  Well, most people don’t realize the health risks involved with tattoo work.  Tattooing involves placing pigments into the dermis – the deep layer of the skin – with a small needle.  The needle should be trashed after the procedure or at least adequately sterilized.  If this is not done (as could be the case with unlicensed artists or establishments), diseases such as hepatitis C can be spread between the people receiving the tattoos.

What’s the real risk of getting hepatitis C from a tattoo?  A study done in the early nineties in Texas showed that as many as 18% of people who unknowingly carried hepatitis C had previously had tattoos placed, and a third of those tattooed patients had the tattoo work done in a commercial tattoo parlor.  Of the patients who did not have tattoos, only 3.5% of them carried the hepatitis C virus.    The problem with having hepatitis C is that it can lead to long term liver damage in the form of cirrhosis or liver cancer.  For more info on the details of hepatitis C  – modes of transmission, symptoms, treatment, and complications – check out the CDC’s FAQs for the Public.

The incidence of contracting hepatitis C from tattoos today may be lower due to the licensure and inspection performed by health departments at state and local levels; however, it also appears that the prevalence of tattoos among the general population is on the rise.  We may have to stay tuned to see which way this problem is going….