When Pia visited a beauty care center in 2021, she hoped to receive treatments that would increase her energy and help her burn some body fat. She never imagined she would end up with a drug-resistant infection that would leave her disfigured and still recovering after more than two years.
Strong Bacterial Infection
After moving to California and dreaming of becoming a fitness and lifestyle influencer, Pia was eager to get an injection of B12 and C vitamins, along with a compound called deoxycholic acid that is supposed to dissolve fat.
Pia said, “They told me that the more areas they injected into my body, the better it would be.” She said she was injected more than 100 times in her arms, abdomen, and lower back with a mix of vitamins and fat-dissolving ingredients.
Within 24 hours, Pia felt dizzy and had a fever. Every injection site, according to her, was painful and oozing.
She said, “Anything that touched my skin was extremely painful. I felt like my whole body was on fire.”
Federal Warnings about Beauty Care Centers
The number of beauty care centers and hydration clinics has surged in recent years, evolving into a $15 billion health industry offering a variety of services, from intravenous infusion therapy to skincare and cosmetic procedures. Federal health officials and representatives of beauty care centers warn consumers that some facilities use unlicensed workers to inject unapproved products in unsanitary conditions.
It is difficult to know how many people have been harmed in beauty care centers, as infections often go unreported to local or state health departments. However, some infectious disease doctors and emergency departments say they are seeing more adverse reactions associated with those facilities.
Little Oversight in Beauty Care Centers
There are no federal health regulations or standard operating procedures for beauty care centers, according to Alex Thiersch, CEO of the American Med Spa Association. These facilities are under the authority of each state, requiring the presence of doctors or other medical professionals on the team.
Thiersch says this rule is rarely enforced. “There are states that do not have the resources or the time to look into beauty care centers and ensure that they are doing things correctly,” he said.
The American Med Spa Association aims to bridge the gap by providing legal and business resources to about 4,000 beauty care centers across the United States, working with them to ensure they operate according to state laws.
Although the vast majority are compliant and “very safe,” he said that the small number of centers that allow unauthorized procedures and employ unlicensed workers keeps him “up at night.”
Staying Safe at Beauty Care Centers
Experts urge people to ask questions when seeking treatments at beauty care centers:
Who owns and operates the beauty care center?
Who is performing the treatment, and what credentials does that person have?
Is there a licensed physician on-site in case of complications?
Pia says, “I know it’s hard to ask these questions.” Looking back, she wishes she had asked for answers before receiving the vitamin and fat-dissolving injection.
After nearly three years from the bacterial infection, Pia is still disfigured and continues to receive intensive antibiotic treatment.
She says, “Everything in my life has changed because of this.” “Who knows if I will ever heal?”
Source: https://www.aol.com/warnings-grow-risky-iv-drips-130000186.html
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