(Updated 10/05/2021 with text from the second edition of The Piercing Bible.)

I performed a consultation for a man who abandoned an Apadravya piercing:

Hey Elayne.

I have had an Apadravya in for 11 years. I believe it was originally pierced as a 10G and then stretched to an 8G.

It is time to take it out. I took it out about 48 hours ago. I almost feel like my penis is now more in danger than it was when I had the barbell in. And am curious to know if the holes will eventually close up or if an 8 Gauge is too big of a gap or maybe too much time has passed to allow this to happen. Like a doctor couldn't cauterize the hole to gap it, right?

Maybe too much worrying going on in my head. I just don't want these new un-covererd holes from getting infected and I almost want to pump someone full of baby juice at somepoint. So this tripple pee spray is not the spread I want.

Thank you for any and all information.

Thanks for listening.

My reply:

Hello D.

When abandoned, a piercing that old and established won't "heal" per se, but it is very likely to shrink. A healed piercing has "epithelialized" as cells have grown to line the channel making it a sealed hole within your body. So it isn't an open wound, but a channel all to itself (a "fistula"). This is assuming, of course, that you weren't experiencing irritation, a flare-up, or other problem, which can indicate that there is open tissue.

This is from the Revised & Expanded  second edition of my book, The Piercing Bible--The Definitive Guide to Safe Piercing:

Will It Close?

Depending on the size, age, and location of a healed piercing, as well as the course of stretching, if any, it may not seal up completely. Most holes contract quite rapidly and can continue to shrink over time. During the ensuing weeks, the area will stabilize, and the channel is apt to remain in whatever state it has achieved within a month or two—smaller, or fully closed.

It is nearly impossible for a foreign object to accidentally enter a vacant pierc- ing channel of average size after the jewelry is out and the tissue has shrunk. You will not have an open pathway into your body if the piercing is fully healed before removal. A piercing that has formed a healed tube (fistula) is sealed off and separate from the rest of you. If you retire a piercing before healing concludes, your cells will continue to grow together and seal the wound up completely. Neither is harmful or dangerous.

A fully healed piercing that is abandoned but does not seal up may excrete sebum. A simple test can be done to see if a channel might still be open: squeeze the tissue as if trying to push something out of it. If a thick white secretion of sebum comes from the hole(s), there is a strong possibility the channel is intact. This is not harmful and does not indicate a problem. The area will stabilize, and you can ignore it if you have no itching, swelling, or inflammation. Should your empty piercing discharge sebum spontaneously, you may wish to assist with expressing it periodically. One method is to squeeze the tissue in an attempt to release the matter from each side. Another is to use a small, clean insertion taper (usually 18 or 16 gauge, depending on how tight the channel shrinks) and run it through periodically to clear out the hole’s interior. The taper should fit snugly but pass through without irritating the tissue. Beyond this annoyance, there is seldom any problem from retired piercings.

The only way to be entirely rid of all traces of a previous piercing is by having the residual fistula removed by surgical excision. There is seldom a need to go to that extreme, and, of course, such surgery will leave some scarring of its own.

Many regretful piercees who have abandoned their piercings return to have their jewelry reinserted or to be repierced. Carefully consider whether you are genuinely done with a piercing before removing your jewelry. Reinserting it in a channel that has shrunk can be much more painful than the original procedure—but if a hole is still present and can be stretched, then repiercing is not usually appropriate. If the initial placement was correct, relocating the piercing is undesirable. However, if your piercing closes and leaves you with diminished tissue pliability or excess scar tissue, repiercing the original location might not be possible. Additionally, there is potential for complications when piercing near an open channel. See “Repiercing after Loss,” page 263, for details. If you think there is any chance you might want to put your jewelry back in later, don’t take it out in the first place.