Pierced tongues, lips or cheeks are more common in our youth nowadays.

These oral piercings can cause chipped or cracked teeth, blood clots, blood poisoning, heart infections, brain abscess, nerve disorders (trigeminal neuralgia), receding gums or scar tissue. An infected tongue could swell large enough to close off one’s airway. Our  mouths contain millions of bacteria, and infection is a common complication of oral piercings.