• José Froner Bicca, Rodrigo Pereira Duquia, Juliano de Avelar Breunig, Paulo Ricardo Martins de Souza, and Almeida Hiram Larangeira de HL Jr Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil, Assistant Professor of Dermatology - Federal University of Pelotas (.
• Catholic University of Pelotas, Federal University of Pelotas, PelotasRS, Brazil, Internist - Federal University of Pelotas (UFPEL) - Undertaking postgraduate program in Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas (UCPEL) - Pelotas (RS), Brazil.
• An Bras Dermatol. 2013 Nov 1; 88 (6): 925-8.

BackgroundPrevalence of tattoos is around 10-26% in men and 10-22% in women, and can involve negative effects such as: regret, removal attempts, physical and biological changes of the skin and association with some viral diseases.Objectiveto determine the prevalence, characteristics and factors associated with tattoos in recruiters joining the military.Methodsthe recruiters were examined by dermatologists that documented the presence or absence of tattoos, as well as their sizes, colors, designs and patterns, and whether they needed a parent's consent to get a tattoo.Results1,968 recruiters were examined and the prevalence of tattoos was 10.82% (213), 141 (66.20%) had a single tattoo, 44 (20.66%) two tattoos, 15 (7.04%) three tattoos, 9 (4.23%) four tattoos, and 4 (1.88%) had more than four. Of the total sample, 168 (80.77%) reported getting the first tattoo before the age of 18. 158 (74.53%) were monochromatic. In relation to size, 108 (50.70%) had tattoos of up to 10 cm, 75 (35.21%) had tattoos measuring between 11-20 cm, while 30 had ones over 21 cm (14.09%).ConclusionsThe population studied had a high prevalence of tattoos for their age, the percentage of complex (large and polychromatic) tattoos was also high.

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