{"entity":{"id":"nipple-areola-tattooing","kind":"technology","name":"Nipple and areola tattooing after breast surgery","aka":["Areola tattoo","Nipple tattoo","Medical micropigmentation","3D nipple tattoo","Medical tattooing"],"tldr":"Tattooing colour onto a rebuilt breast to create the look of an areola and nipple, usually done some months after reconstruction is finished.","summary":"Dorset NHS hospital patient information describes the procedure: \"After breast and nipple reconstruction surgery, colour can be added to create a natural looking areola to your new breast(s)\", using semi-permanent colour applied into the top layer of skin with a small hand-held machine. It may be done on a reconstructed nipple or, with shading, to give the appearance of a nipple on a flat surface (often called 3D tattooing). The colour fades and may need topping up.","status":"standard-of-care","asOf":"2026-11-04","links":[{"label":"Dorset County Hospital NHS: medical tattoos after breast surgery (patient leaflet)","url":"https://www.dgft.nhs.uk/pil/medical-tattoos-after-breast-surgery/"}],"tags":["devices-gaps-2026-11"],"related":[],"cancers":["breast-cancer"],"sections":["surgery","supportive-care"],"technologies":["breast-implants","external-breast-prostheses","rejuv-recon-breast"],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":["breast-reconstruction"],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"provenance":{"editedBy":"OnCo device gap fill (openFDA, accessdata.fda.gov, NICE, NHS Drug Tariff Part IX, FDA, maker and society pages)","editedOn":"2026-11-04"},"principle":"Pigment is implanted into the superficial dermis with a hand-held machine, shaded to imitate the colour and projection of an areola and nipple.","strengths":["Completes reconstruction without further surgery","Can be repeated as colour fades"],"limitations":["Pigment fades and may need repeating","Less predictable on irradiated skin"]},"route":"/technologies/nipple-areola-tattooing/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"breast-cancer","kind":"cancer","name":"Breast cancer (all types)","route":"/cancers/breast-cancer/"}],"section":[{"id":"supportive-care","kind":"section","name":"Supportive Care & Survivorship","route":"/fronts/supportive-care/"},{"id":"surgery","kind":"section","name":"Surgery & Interventional","route":"/fronts/surgery/"}],"technology":[{"id":"breast-implants","kind":"technology","name":"Breast implants for reconstruction (silicone gel, saline and shaped cohesive gel)","route":"/technologies/breast-implants/"},{"id":"rejuv-recon-breast","kind":"technology","name":"Breast reconstruction: implant and autologous, immediate and delayed, and what women report afterwards","route":"/technologies/rejuv-recon-breast/"},{"id":"external-breast-prostheses","kind":"technology","name":"External breast prostheses, mastectomy bras and nipple prostheses","route":"/technologies/external-breast-prostheses/"}],"term":[{"id":"breast-reconstruction","kind":"term","name":"Breast reconstruction","route":"/terms/breast-reconstruction/"}]}}