The CDC documents incidences of transmission through aesthetic procedure.
In the United States, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have reported the first-ever cases of HIV transmission linked to aesthetic injections. According to a CDC report released on Thursday, April 25, three women may have contracted the fatal autoimmune disease while getting so-called “vampire facials” at a New Mexico spa.
The first instance of HIV being connected to the VIP Spa in Albuquerque came in 2018, following a middle-aged woman’s positive test result.
The woman reported receiving a vampire facial had no history of injectable drug usage, sexual contact with an HIV-positive person, or recent blood transfusion.
In depth
For anyone receiving injections at the facility, the New Mexico Department of Health was motivated at the time to provide free HIV testing. Following the discovery of “practices that could potentially spread blood-borne infections,” the spa was closed. The CDC has now disclosed that the spa was operating without the proper licence.
In addition to the lady whose HIV test result had prompted the spa’s closure, two other middle-aged women received HIV diagnoses in 2019 and 2023. HIV testing was done on a different woman who received a vampire facial at the spa in 2018. Lately, the “vampire facials” have gained popularity all over the world.
Lately, the “vampire facials” have gained popularity all over the world. These cosmetic procedures are claimed to perk up sagging skin and minimise wrinkles and acne scars. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) asserts that there isn’t much proof to support the procedure’s ability to do that.
Using tiny needles, the blood is drawn out, the plasma is separated, and the blood is then injected into the face. As long as blood is managed appropriately, vampire facials seem to be safe, according to AAD.
According to the results of the investigation conducted by the Health Department and CDC, up to 59 spa patrons may have been exposed to HIV there. Twenty of them were given vampire spa treatments, and the remaining ones were given Botox injections. However authorities said they still don’t know what caused the HIV infection at the spa in the first place.
Take away
In 2022, the owners of the VIP Spa entered a guilty plea to five felonies related to practicing medicine without a licence. They were subsequently given a three and a half year prison sentence.
The CDC and the New Mexico Department of Health discovered troubling fragments of evidence that the spa had neglected to take the necessary safety precautions during a cooperative investigation.
A rack of blood tubes without labels was discovered among food and injectables such as lidocaine, a local anaesthetic, on a kitchen counter inside a refrigerator. Additionally, unwrapped syringes were found in garbage cans, counters, and drawers.
