Piercing guide › Ear piercings › Tragus
The tragus is the small flap of cartilage in front of the ear canal. The piercing goes across through this flap.
I check the size of your tragus, mark it and, after your confirmation, pierce with a needle. The back of the jewellery will later sit in the entrance to the ear canal.
As initial jewellery I use a short flat-back bar made of Bioplast or titanium to ASTM F136.
Online, the tragus piercing is sometimes called the “weight-loss piercing”. Whether a piercing at this spot has any effect is still an open question. What is known about it can be found on the Effectiveness page. I pierce the tragus as a piercing — cleanly and so that it suits your ear.
A very small tragus offers too little room. Then I advise against it.
Cartilage has hardly any blood supply. That's why every cartilage piercing heals much more slowly than the earlobe, even if it looks calm from the outside earlier.
How to care for the piercing in each phase is explained in detail on the Care and aftercare page. The short version: sterile saline solution, don't twist, don't fiddle with it, be patient.
When to see a doctor immediately
An inflammation of the cartilage is serious and can permanently deform the ear. Don't wait.
Pain and healing time are guide values, averaged from information given by piercing and tattoo studios. Where the figures come from. Everyone feels and heals differently.
Want a tragus piercing or have a question about it?
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