A student came up to me and told me that she needed me to look at something. I followed her back to her cubicle where she had a young Somali female in the dental chair. The student lifted her upper lip and asked me if this was racial pigmentation*.
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| Young Somali female with intentional tattooing |
This is a type of intentional tattoo that is seen commonly in African women. They believe that darker gingiva is a sign of beauty. To accomplish this, they undergo a painful procedure that requires insertion of a black powdered substance, made with burnt oil and shea butter, into the gingiva with the help of needles.
The patient confirmed that she had undergone this procedure. Since the incorporated material is extremely biocompatible, no management is needed.
*Racial pigmentation - Also known as physiological pigmentation is diffuse melanosis of oral mucosa usually seen in people with darker skin tones.
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