History of Cosmetic and Medical Tattoos

Abstract

Tattooing for medical purposes may have been around more than 5,300 years ago, but most of the interest and changes have occurred during the last 100 years as a consequence of scientific advances leading to quicker, cleaner, and less painful insertion of pigment into the skin as well as advances in medical knowledge allowing for more relevant individual information to be transmitted by the embedded pigment. These changes are ongoing. Cosmetic tattooing or tattooing for camouflage of body surface imperfections, likewise, has advanced during the last 50 years concurrently with the rise of social media, internet access, and the popularity of personal electronic visuals.