How do you treat an abscessed lip piercing?

If your lip piercing has abscessed, your first point of call should be a doctor. An abscessed piercing is a build up of pus and infected material which has been trapped under healed skin, and so it will need to be drained. Do not remove your jewellery unless you have spoken to a doctor and he has recommended it, because your piercing may not have abscessed. (It is very easy to assume that your piercing has abscessed when in fact it is just infected or healing in an unusual way.) You may wish to speak to your piercer also, unless you pierced yourself, which I would recommend against doing again.

• Speak to a doctor
• Do not remove the jewellery or attempt to drain it yourself
• Talk to your piercer if you're unsure.