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Seeking input on a non-standard rfid implant location

As I detailed in another thread, I'm thinking of implanting a second bio-thermo glass tag a centimeter or two above my left ear.  This tag would lie parallel to the ground when standing (i.e. horizontally).  I won't go into the reason here as I've already posted that in the other thread, but since I've had no responses there and don't want to do this without any input from others, I've started a new thread on the subject.

My envisioned procedure would be the shave the area of hair, tent the skin using a loop of duct tape (a method I used for the first bio-thermo implant and detailed on that other thread), insert the injector in the standard way, and deposit the chip.

I've got a number of concerns, though, that I'd like some feedback on.  Hoping someone with practical knowledge of this area of the body is floating around the forum...

Obviously I've got concerns about the superficial temporal artery.  This alone may be a show stopper.  Based on descriptions of the the tissue layers, I'm thinking that when the skin is tented in this area, the most "give" is coming from the loose areolar tissue, which would seem to indicate I'm tenting up the layer containing this artery (and accompanying vein).  This would seem to place them right in the potential path of the needle, which is obviously not what I want.  The same goes for the auriculotemporal nerve.  This would seem to indicate I'd be taking quite a risk of doing some real damage.  Am I right in all this?  Or is the "stretch" going to primarily come from the temporoparietal fascia, leaving all the vitals safely deeper in the tissue that the needle could end up?

If this is NOT a show stopper, my next area of concern would be damage to the hair follicles in the area.  The initial point of insertion would surely damage a small cluster of them, but is the needle passing below them going to be a concern?  Will I end up with a narrow bald stripe in the area?  It would seem that someone with firsthand knowledge of "decorative" subdermal silicone head implants might be able to speak on this subject.  I've seen no accounts of hair loss because of one of those types of body mods, but I've little knowledge of these types of things.

Yet another concern would be potential discomfort in the area.  I'm thinking that the ear itself likely props the head up enough to take most of the weight off the area when I lay on my left side, but I'd like some input.  I've not worn glasses in years but I don't remember any particular discomfort from the arm of a pair of eyeglasses in this circumstance.  Admittedly, the arm of a pair of glasses runs far closer to the ear than the tag would be, so it may not be a valid comparison.  In any circumstance, this tag would be far closer to bone and have less tissue padding it.

So, talk to me, ladies and gents.  Can this be done safely?  Am I out of my mind to be considering it?  I at first considered my forearm implantation of the same chip to potentially be impossible, but I did it and it went very well (better than expected, actually, insofar as the implantation itself went).  I want to do it to study how the readings differ from the forearm.  I want to do it for the personal science of the thing, to observe the process, healing, and potential after effects of it.  I want to do it because it's cool.  Can it be done?

Comments

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  1. The main concern for me would indeed be the contact with the hard bone of the scull. But this may vary widely due to live circumstances, like if you do sports like boxing or mma or if you have to wear helmets in your profession and so on. Second thought is, that your scull is not really "sealed". The bone is of porous structure with many small holes, if I remember right they are important for supply issues. So, if you got an infection on your scull it actually CAN traverse the bone, a thing surely nobody wants. Inside the scull there would still be dura mater in the way, so you wouldn't actually infect your brain, but I personally don't like the thought. (See "Osteomyelitis" for this one and please correct me somebody if I am wrong on that).
  2. I don't have the knowledge to comment on most of your concerns. As for the hair loss, I don't think it will be an issue. I think there would be a small patch where the incision was which may not grow back, but I think the hair over the chip would be ok. The hair on my forearm where my chip is seems fine, it far less dense than on one's head, but I don't think the hair follicles are different. One thing I'd be concerned about is how close the chip is to bone. Normally we make sure rfid implants are well away from bone. There is a reason for this, they are encapsulated in glass, which is pretty hard to break when it's padded by tissue, but if it were very close to bone, a large impact could possibly break the coating.
  3. I appreciate the comments so far.  Thanks.

    I've definitely given a fair bit of thought to the closeness to the bone but somehow it never feels to me like it'll be a problem..  I guess I should probably be more concerned about it than I am, but I really feel like it'll be okay, given my personal habits and circumstances.

    I appreciate the information on the apparent non-impact on the hair above a forearm chip.  My own forearm chip is on the opposite side of the arm where the hair on humans is exceptionally fine and sparse, so I was unable to use mine as a reference.

    I appreciate the info on osteomyelitis.  It gave me a whole bunch of interesting reading and some things to think about.  RFIDs heal so quickly, though, that so long as I'm using a sterile injector and clean in the implant site prior to insertion, I think that won't be an issue here.

    Still hoping for some input on my concerns about the veins, arteries, nerves, etc.  Anyone?
Displaying all 3 comments