Ahhh…a relaxing day at the spa! You recline in a comfy chair as someone massages citrus-scented oil into your toes, Michael Bublé crooning in the background. The perfect way to spend a morning. You step out with gorgeous toes of hot pink, never suspecting that your pampering pedicure will end in a nasty viral infection.
Sadly, even some really posh places can unknowingly spread scary germs that cause fungal, viral and bacterial infections. These can easily pass from client to client on pedicure utensils that have not been properly sterilized or when the tub isn’t sterilized after each patient.
Such infections can cause a full array of lovely conditions like athlete’s foot, plantar warts, yellow toenails, bacterial infections, and even hepatitis B or C. Scary!
There are a couple of things you can do to avoid getting an infection from a pedicure:
- Bring your own set of properly cleaned tools.
- Ask how the salon sterilizes their equipment and make sure everything has been sterilized since the last customer.
- Check to make sure the salon has posted a current license from the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology, and that your pedicurist is displaying her own current license.
- Avoid salons that aren’t spotlessly clean or that don’t use disposable tub liners.
- Hold off on heading in for a pedicure if you have any nicks, cuts or sores on your feet or ankles. Even the tiniest of cuts can be an open invitation for the type of bacteria that can spread from a pedicure (or manicure).
Even with these precautions, it is important to keep an eye on the health of your feet after the pedicure. If you notice any strange colors, boils, sores or pain, call our office for an appointment.
The treatment will depend on the type and severity of the infection. Options include anti-fungal medications, topical medications, antifungal lacquer and antibiotics. Over-the-counter creams do not eliminate most fungal infections, so we recommend you come in for an appointment rather than trying to treat this condition yourself. It typically won’t go away, and it’s likely to return and spread to other toes and maybe even other body parts if left untreated.
If you have an infection from a pedicure, call our office at 859-264-1141 for an appointment. We suffer for our beauty, don’t we, girls?
