Severe Infection Risks and Dangers of Pedicures

Since getting a pedicure involves files, pumice stones, tweezers, and other tools, there is a risk that you can contract an infection due to a break in the skin. Even just skin-to-skin contact can carry the health risk of certain contagions. Pedicure dangers can be mitigated with certain precautions, but if nail salons fail to take those precautions, you can hold them liable for negligence with the help of a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer.

Types of Infections You Could Get From a Pedicure

From the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), several different types of infections are possible from a pedicure, with the categories being fungal infections, bacterial infections, and viruses.

Fungal Infections

Fungi thrive in warm, moist environments, so it makes sense that you could contract one while getting a pedicure, where your feet are often soaked in warm water. You could contract athlete’s foot and a type of fungus called onychomycosis, commonly referred to as a fungal nail infection, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Bacterial Infections

One of the most well-known bacterial infection risks at nail salons is a staph infection. Clinical Infectious Diseases also highlights a bacteria called Mycobacterium fortuitum, which you’re more likely to get in a contaminated whirlpool footbath. Another common bacterial infection is paronychia, which affects the skin around the nail.

Viral Infections

Plantar warts, caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), are contagious, and you can pick it up at a nail salon. If you had any broken skin at the time of your pedicure and you came in contact with the virus, you could develop warts.

Other Risks

In some instances, you can contract bloodborne illnesses or even common viruses like the flu or COVID-19 at a nail salon. These may not even be directly related to your pedicure, but they can still cause health problems.

Some customers also suffer allergic reactions to materials or products, causing hives, contact dermatitis, or even anaphylaxis.

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When Are You at Risk for Dangers From a Pedicure?

You are at increased risk of infection if you have any cuts or open wounds on your feet or legs when you go for a pedicure.

However, the responsibility doesn’t solely rest on you. Nail salon workers can expose you to more danger due to their own mistakes or failures. Such errors may include:

Unsanitary tools
Insufficient general sanitization
Failure to clean foot baths
Reuse of single-use products
Not washing hands
Failure to use or change gloves

A nail salon might think they’re taking adequate precautions but could be making mistakes. For instance, a nail technician might use a cleaner that kills bacteria but does not leave it on a surface long enough to do its job effectively.

Even so, ignorance isn’t a defense. Negligence is determined based on the reasonable person standard. What this standard means is if a reasonable person would have acted differently, then the negligent party can be held liable.

In the case of a nail salon, it’s reasonable to expect a salon worker to be aware of what sanitization procedures are necessary to keep customers safe. Not knowing about those procedures isn’t a defense but proof of their negligence—they should know this information.

You Can Hold Nail Salons Responsible for Severe Infections

If a nail salon doesn’t take precautions that a reasonable person would have in the same situation, your attorney can hold them liable for causing you harm with a pedicure. To do that, you need evidence.

Violation of Duty of Care and Your Injury or Illness

All the mistakes and failures we mentioned above are examples of violations of the duty of care. We can prove that these occurred through:

Photos of your infection
Security footage of the salon showing failures, if available
Testimony from other customers
Statements from employees
Medical records and diagnoses
Doctor testimony about your infection and how you got it
Statements and analysis from other experts

The point is to connect the nail salon’s negligent actions to your infection. If other people get sick, we can talk to them about their experiences. In some cases, we can even gather physical evidence, like testing foot baths for fungal growth.

Damages for a Severe Infection From a Pedicure

Because you suffered a severe infection after a pedicure due to negligence, you are owed compensation. Your compensation should cover all the costs of treating and recovering from the infection, such as:

Hospital stays
Diagnostic tests
Antibiotics and other medications
Surgery, including repairing scars
Physical therapy, if applicable
Long-term prescriptions

We also consider your emotional distress and pain and suffering. You went from engaging in a little pampering with a pedicure to suffering a serious illness. In some cases, you could be left with scarring or even loss of a limb. There’s no other way to put it—this was traumatic. Trauma is recognizable as a consequence of personal injury, and we can seek the maximum amount possible for this aspect of your experience.

If you missed work while recovering from your infection, we can also recover lost income. Similarly, if a consequence of the infection is that you can’t earn the same amount you did before the pedicure, we can seek damages to cover that gap in earning capacity.

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Important Things to Know About Seeking Damages for a Severe Pedicure Infection

One of the most important things to know about any personal injury case is that you can only seek compensation if you take action in a timely manner. For that reason, take your story to a lawyer to determine the strength of your case.

Act Fast to Preserve Evidence

Physical evidence, video footage, and witness testimony are all parts of your case that could disappear quickly. Evidence is destroyed either purposefully or accidentally, footage gets taped over, and witnesses can forget details. The sooner you start documenting your case, the better.

You Have a Filing Deadline

You generally have a couple of years to file a personal injury lawsuit, but that deadline is for turning in all the court documents; there are a lot of steps that can precede the filing to prepare your case. Moreover, the statute of limitations isn’t always set in stone, so verify the filing deadline with your legal team.

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Get Personalized Guidance on a Dangerous Pedicure Case Today

Contact Van Law Firm now for a free case review from our personal injury attorneys. Risking a serious infection after a pedicure is not something you should just accept. Your expenses and personal trauma are compensable through a lawsuit.

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