Oral Piecings and Dental Health

If you pierce your tongue, lips, cheeks, or uvula (the tiny tissue that hangs at the back of the throat) it can interfere with speech, chewing, or swallowing. It may also cause:
Infection, pain and swelling. Your mouth is a moist environment, home to huge amounts of breeding bacteria, and an ideal place for infection. An infection can quickly become life threatening if not treated promptly. It is also possible for a piercing to cause your tongue to swell, potentially blocking your airway.
Damage to gums, teeth and fillings. A common habit of biting or playing with the piercing can injure your gums and lead to cracked, scratched, or sensitive teeth. Piercings can also damage fillings.
Hypersensitivity to metals. Allergic reactions at the pierced site are also possible.
Nerve damage. After a piercing, you may experience a numb tongue that is caused by nerve damage that is usually temporary, but can sometimes be permanent. The injured nerve may affect your sense of taste, or how you move your mouth. Damage to your tongue's blood vessels can cause serious blood loss.
Excessive drooling. Your tongue piercing can increase saliva production.
Dental appointment difficulties. The jewelry can get in the way of dental care by blocking X-rays.

Oral Piercings

Some people choose to express themselves with body piercing. Oral piercing or tongue splitting may look cool, but they can be very dangerous to your health. Your mouth contains millions of bacteria and infections and swelling often occur with mouth piercings. What you may not know is that your mouth and tongue could swell so much that you close your airway or you could possibly choke if part of the jewelry breaks off in your mouth. In some cases, you could crack a tooth if you bite down too hard on the piercing. Repeated clicking of jewelry against your teeth can also cause damage. Oral piercing could also lead to more serious infections such as hepatitis or endocarditis.