TATTOOS and piercings could be dangerous, warns a leading dermatologist from Sevilla.

Julián Conejo-Mir, president of the Spanish Dermatology Academy, says both tattoos and piercings can lead to serious infections and illnesses.

An overgrowth of scar tissue, or ‘proud flesh’ on a wound, can result from piercings and lead to infections and lifelong deformities.

A badly-drawn tattoo can produce dermatitis.

Conejo-Mir also says that once a tattoo has been carried out, it is there for life, since it is nearly impossible to remove even with laser treatment.

But a recently-discovered Chinese dye, pioneered in the USA, could be the future of tattoos, since it comes off easily and permanently with one blast of a laser, leaving no traces or infections.

Another issue relating to tattoos and piercings that concerns dermatologists, says Conejo-Mir, is a condition known as ‘dismorphophobia’.

Likening the condition to Michael Jackson’s obsession with plastic surgery, he says sufferers add more and more tattoos and piercings to their bodies because they are unhappy with their physical appearance.

Other sufferers – the King of Pop included – have excessive cosmetic surgery even when it is not necessary due to insecurities about their image.

“We see a lot of that in our daily consultations,” reveals Conejo-Mir (pictured).