What happens if you’re a skin donor but you have tattoos

If you ever sign up to be an organ donor then a piece of you might be able to keep someone alive, but there's so much more of you to give.

As well as being an organ donor you can also sign up to become a tissue donor where you agree to give your skin, bone and other bits of the body to people in need.

This tissue is used to help repair the bodies of thousands of people each and every year, but what's to be done if your skin is coated in a layer of decorative ink?

It's a valid question, to be fair. (Getty stock photo)

Should you be coated head to toe in appealing tattoos and then have agreed to donate your skin you might wonder whether it'd be accepted, but when it comes down to it hospitals aren't going to turn away your tattooed skin.

It might result in someone getting a chunk of your artwork on their body but it's all part of a medical procedure.

Of course this would only work if the person getting the skin grafted onto them wasn't allergic to tattoo ink, and there's always a danger of rejection where the body doesn't accept the new addition and it instead dies off.

If all goes well then the skin recipient is going to get the graft and have your tattoo on themselves now, though they could always get it lasered off later on.

Alternatively they might decide they like the look and keep it, or perhaps decide to stick with it in tribute to the person who donated their skin.

In some parts of the world you can even agree to donate your tattooed skin not for medical reasons but artistic ones.

You have to sign up to this beforehand and make sure everyone knows you agree on what you want to happen

You can donate tissue such as skin as well as your organs. (BSIP/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

However, in most cases a skin graft is done with bits of skin from the same person who requires the graft.

Most grafts come from other parts of the body which have not been damaged and shaves off some layers of the skin from parts which heal well like your thighs, buttocks or calves.

This is known as a partial or split thickness skin graft, but in more serious cases a full thickness skin graft may be used.

This is where not only the top layer of skin is used but also the layers beneath.

Skin for these grafts usually comes from the neck, behind your ears, the upper arms and the groin where the layers are thicker.

Now you know something, and knowing is half the battle.