3 Women Infected With HIV After Vampire Facial in US

Three women are suspected to have got infected with HIV while receiving a so-called vampire facial at a New Mexico spa, in the US.

Vampire Facial is a cosmetic injection procedure. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this is the first known incident of HIV transmission during a cosmetic injection procedure.

People opt for the Vampire Facial as it is cheaper than getting a facelift through plastic surgery. During this facial, a person’s blood is taken from their arm, and then platelets are separated out and applied to the patient’s face using microneedles. As per medical experts, this process can pose serious health hazards if done in unsanitary conditions.

Several people were suspected to have got infected with HIV through vampire facials at the since-closed facility, the CDC report said. HIV got transmitted through nonsterile cosmetic injection services.

As per NBC News, the first case was a middle-aged woman who tested positive for HIV in 2018. She had no history of injectable drug use, recent blood transfusions or recent sexual contact with someone with HIV – but she did report getting a vampire facial, the CDC report stated. The second two were also middle-aged women who had gotten vampire facials in 2018.

The CDC said that the spa did not have appropriate licenses to operate and was not using proper safety measures. The spa’s owner pleaded guilty in 2022 to five felony counts of practising medicine without a license. She was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison.

CDC and health department investigators ultimately determined that 59 spa clients may have been exposed to HIV. Of those, 20 had received vampire facials. The investigators said the original source of the HIV contamination at the spa remains unknown.