wierd skin rash in tattoo

[tatrobyrd]

for about 6 months now i have had this itchy spot on my upper right arm within my tattoo. once i start scratching it gets worse and i have to stop myself or else ill bleed.once i started scratching the first spot it has now turned into 5. there is one now that is not on the tattoo. i have had this tattoo for over 7 years without a problem. its seems to itch once or twice a day and doesnt go away even if i cover it with creams and bandaids. ive researched it but cant seem to figure out what it is and now im worried becouse it seems to be spreading but only on the skin in and around my tattoo. these spots look like if you had a mosquito bite that you never stopped scratching. my skin around it seems to feel a little thicker and kind of numb. they are flat and not bumpy. anyone have anything like this or any idea about it. im stumped

[dee_rockette]

Woah! Totally my issue! I got stars tattooed rounf my arch n by my big toe. Purple ink totally fine for months- I shld also mention that, that same day I got 3 circles done on my chest with same ink n same gun. The stars on both my feet- but not by my toes- have started making dry blisters, pealing, itching- so much so that I over scratch n often bleed. My artist said use lotion, my dr said I've never heard of this. I've been uusing cortizone cream that was prescribed for my eczema.. So far it hasn't helped. Its been a week since I started with the cortizone. I'm sorry I'm no help- but I thought I'd share my experience! Goodluck! I know I'll need it hahaha

[studentnurse11]

I too experience a rash in the blue colors of my sleeve tattoo. I've experienced it 4 times now, only over the summer.  It has been most worst in the area near the crease of my arm....why I am not sure....maybe the skin is more sensitive there.  Been to 4 Docs. All, have diff opinions as to what is causing it. The last Dr. I saw gave me PhisoHex (antibact. soap) to use and Clindoxyl gel. It has cleared up again.... I am holding back from exposing it to the sun to see if this really is what is causing it.  One Dr. did tell me that you can develop a photosensitive reaction to metals in particular dyes, and the may only appear upon exposure. Just wondering if your reaction in the blue dye cleared up after a week or two, and has it come back???

[studentnurse11]

Just wondering, with regards to your reaction to blue ink, did the reaction only appear after sun exposure, and was it a raised, itchy rash that cleared after a week-2weeks? Seems I have developed some sort of allergy to the blue in my sleeve tattoo....the only thing I can connect it to is sunlight.  Last time it appeared I had been camping for 5 days and had gotten a lot of sun.  Two days later, the rash appeared again, in particular blue areas of my tattoo.  

[studentnurse11]

Just wondering, you said you get your rash in the summer...is the rash contained only to your tattoo, and what color ink? and does it clear up after a week or 2? The only reason I ask, is b/c it seems i am having the same problem. Pretty much the only thing I can relate it to is the sun. I get the rash on blue portions of my sleeve tattoo, usually a couple of days after sun exposure. I keep my arms covered while I have the rash, and once cleared up I wear short-sleeves again in the sun, and wallaaaa! the rash comes back! My rash has cleared up since the last "break out" and I've been holding off being in the sun....gonna see if it makes a pesky reappearance.
(also I should note, I've had this tattoo since December, had it touched up in February....didnt have any probs with it until sunlight exposure)

[steffid111]

ive had my lucky cat tattoo on my fore arm for two years now and just in this past week ive been getting 2 little spots in it,i scarathed it earlier and when i broke the skin it started to sting quite abit for a while. dont undertand it as i have 7 other tats without any trouble just this one in paticular.

[jmonqt]

I came down with the itch about a week an a half ago and then the bumps/rash came out on Monday this week. The tattoo that it has attached to is about 3-4 months old and I have 4 other tattoos that have been fine. This rash thing is only on the inner part of my arm between my elbow crease and armpit, and the colors are blue and grey. After reading all of the comments here yesterday, I noticed a trend of people using tea tree oil. I ran out and purchased some last night and have applied twice so far. Can anyone shed some light on how long I should use this, or how many times a day I should apply to get the best results. Any help is greatly appreciated!!