Vampire Facials at New Mexico Spa Linked to Additional Cases of HIV
Anyone who received injection-related services from the VIP Spa in Albuquerque should be retested for HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C, according to the New Mexico Department of Health
Former clients of a now-shuttered New Mexico salon are being urged to get tested for HIV after new infections linked to vampire facials at the facility were discovered years after its closure.
On Wednesday, the New Mexico Department of Health (DOH) announced that a newly diagnosed case of HIV was reported to the DOH Infectious Disease Bureau. The patient’s only self-reported HIV exposure was a vampire facial they received at the VIP Spa in Albuquerque back in 2018.
Vampire facials use the client’s own blood pulled and re-inserted with micro-needling to refresh the skin on their face.
Health officials state that anyone who received similar services at the VIP Spa visit the South Valley Public Health office in Albuquerque for HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C lab testing — even if they previously tested negative.
“It’s very important that we spread the word and remind people who received any kind of injection-related to services provided at the VIP Spa to come in for free and confidential testing,” Dr. Laura Parajon, deputy secretary for DOH, said in a release.
Due to the new case, the DOH reopened their investigation on the incident and found that there were “additional HIV infections with direct or indirect connection with services provided at the VIP Spa.”
RELATED: Clients Who Underwent Vampire Facials at New Mexico Spa Urged to Get Tested for HIV
New Mexico health officials first warned clients who got a vampire facial at the Albuquerque spa to get tested for HIV and hepatitis in September 2018, after one person got an infection.
The DOH immediately shut down VIP Spa after the client reported the infection and the initial investigation found that their injected treatments, including vampire facials and Botox, could spread blood-borne infections like HIV, and hepatitis B and C.
At the time, DOH epidemiologist Dr. Michael Landen said they were alarmed by how VIP Spa stored, handled and disposed of needles.
“That’s concerning, because if needles aren’t handled appropriately, you could potentially increase the risk of a blood-borne infection,” Landen told KOAT News.
Maria Ramos de Ruiz, the owner of VIP Spa, said that they only use disposable needles. “I open them in front of my clients every time they come,” she told the outlet.
More than 100 former clients were tested during the initial investigation in 2018 and 2019.
In April 2021, Ramos de Ruiz was charged individual counts of racketeering and fraud, as well as five counts of practicing medicine without a license, six counts of money laundering, four counts of tax evasion and seven counts of willful failure to collect and pay taxes.
In June 2022 she was sentenced to three and a half years in prison.
For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on People.
