BODY art like tattoo, whether permanent or temporary, is no longer associated with criminals or organized syndicates. For tattoo lovers, here’s what you should know.

Practices at some tattoo parlors may increase the risk for developing a type of skin infection that more typically occurs in people with compromised immune systems.

Two reported cases of Mycobacterium haemophilum skin infections in tattoo parlors abroad mark the first time this type of skin infection has been linked to tattoos and tattooing. The findings are published in Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Researchers say two people may have developed Mycobacterium haemophilum skin infections after getting a tattoo at the same parlor.

The researchers suspect the infections developed because the tattoo parlor operator used tap water, not sterilized water, in a rinsing solution to dilute the ink for shading.

In August 2009, a healthy 44-year-old man developed a painless rash where he received a tattoo. A doctor eventually identified the cause of the infection as Mycobacterium haemophilum, and the man was successfully treated with antibiotics. Another healthy 35-year-old man developed a similar infection after receiving a tattoo at the same tattoo parlor. The infection source was suspected but not confirmed in the second patient.

Tattoo parlors are encouraged to use sterile water for rinsing solutions.