Why is cartilage hard to heal?

Answer 1

Well cartilage is the framework for the ear, this fibrous tissue structure has no actual blood circulation of it's own (remember it's just a frame) it gets it's blood supply from the surrounding *tissue (*the skin and it's many layers). When a cartilage piercing is done by a professional body piercer, the tissue is pierced larger than the jewellery gauge to allow the skin to form a tube into the cut cartilage and thus heal. We want the tissue to heal into the cartilage, if the jewellery is the same size as the piercing the skin has no room to form between the jewellery and cartilage and thus pain and discomfort. Circulation is another issue care needs to be used when laying out the piercing, fine vessels and arteries must be avoided when choosing a location to pierce. Damage to these can lead to decreased blood flow and longer healing times. It's really detailed work involving hours of study to understand the whole system and how it works. That is why ear piercing guns should never be used to pierce ear cartilage, the piercing stud is not designed to make an allowance for the tissue to enter into the cartilage to heal.