Do-it-yourself tattoos or piercings can be a dangerous practice.

The growing trend of friends applying tattoos or piercings for each other can have dangerous consequences. Dr. Janak Koirala, assistant professor of infectious diseases at SIU School of Medicine in Springfield, explains the hazards.

SOUND BITE: " . . . the infection of the site of tattooing or piercing because of contamination of needles or contamination afterwards. So something like staph infection. On the other hand, the second type of infection you can get from what we call blood borne pathogens, meaning contamination of the needle with the blood of another person if it is used again on somebody else then that person if he or she is carrying for example hepatitis or HIV that can be transported from person to person.

Koirala says one of the biggest concerns for people includes the potential spread of tetanus or hepatitis B or C, which can cause cancer or liver chirrhosis. Bacterial infections can also sometimes cause serious life-threatening diseases. He has this advice for people who are doing tattoos or piercing for their friends.

SOUND BITE: " . . . the main thing is to avoid contamination of the device that is being used, so use sterile needles instruments and clean the area with some kind of antiseptic before you use and keep the area from getting contaminated after piercing or tattooing until it heals. So that the ah the area that is open does not get infected."

Koirala says if anyone gets an infection from a tattoo or piercing, they should quickly see their primary care physician for evaluation and treatment.