A manicure or pedicure should be a wonderful, relaxing experience for everyone to indulge in. Since there are sequential consumers contacting the warm, moist environment of a manicure or pedicure service, we would appreciate your assistance in keeping sanitation practices diligent and infection control practices followed. We want to keep Nevada safe from bacterial skin infection outbreaks that have harmed hundreds of customers of nail salons in other states. We are thankful that Nevada has avoided these outbreaks. We want to keep it that way, but we need your help. We have an active public education campaign that highlights nail salon safety, health, and infection control. For detailed information on all aspects of cosmetology and salon safety you should visit our website http://cosmetology.nv.gov.Nail Technology is one of nine individual branches of cosmetology licensed and regulated in Nevada. The other eight are Aesthetics, Electrology, Demonstrators of Cosmetics, Makeup Artist, Threading, Shampoo Technologist, Hair Braiding, and Hair Design.
We also license Cosmetologists, who are authorized to practice all branches of cosmetology (except electrology and threading).Nail Technologists are licensed practitioners who may provide the following services in a licensed salon: Salons are required to post a facility license in plain view of the public. Nail technologists are required to display their licenses in plain view of the public at the position where the nail technologist performs his or her work. These licenses must be posted in public view and cannot be photocopies. The license issued by the Nevada State Board of Cosmetology has the name and recent photo of the licensee printed on the license.Unlicensed salons and unlicensed nail technologists servicing nails on the public are illegal and prohibited by Nevada Law.After washing with soap, nail technicians are required to take the following steps between each customer: It is prohibited for salons to keep a customer’s nail files, buffer blocks, cuticle sticks, sanding drums, sanding wheels, bands, or any other tool.
Sandal season is year round in Nevada, and you may be tempted to rush to your favorite salon for a foot soak and pedicure so that your feet will look their best. But it’s important to be vigilant as you sit in the pedicure chair — your health and safety may depend on it. Spas and salons are where we go to feel relaxed and pampered — stress and worry are not supposed to be part of the picture, especially when the concern is infection, which is exactly what can happen if these facilities don’t maintain sanitary conditions as required by health and safety regulations. Lurking in the depths of that foot spa may be bacteria, fungal strains, and even far more dangerous microorganisms that typically thrive in warm, moist environments. The screens and tubes of foot spas are particularly good places for bacteria to collect and grow, often forming dense layers of cells and proteins called biofilms, which can be very hard to remove. If open sores or skin wounds are present (including insect bites, scratches, scabbed-over wounds, or any condition that weakens the skin barrier) this gives the germs a pathway into the body.
In October 2000, California health officials received complaints about a large outbreak of skin boils from customers who soaked their feet in foot spas as part of their pedicure services. It was determined that the boils were caused by contaminated whirlpool foot spas that had not been properly cleaned in a California nail salon. Officials with the Centers for Disease Control swabbed 30 footbaths in 18 nail salons from five California counties and found mycobacterium in 29 of the 30 samples, according to a CDC abstract published in 2005.At particular risk are those with diabetes. According to WebMD, if you’re diabetic you need to take extra precautions when getting foot treatments. Any break in the skin (including ones caused by callous removal or aggressive cuticle cutting) can let in bacteria, leading to infection.The Nevada State Board of Cosmetology, which licenses nail technicians and nail salons and enforces the State laws covering the beauty industry, has found that the most common violations found in nail salons include:
Here are some tips from the Board to help insure you have a satisfying and safe pedicure experience: A fish pedicure is a procedure in which a consumer places his or her feet in a foot bath or tub that contains live fish. The fish then eat dead skin cells off the consumer’s feet. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says that infections have been reported in the United Kingdom by people who have had a fish pedicure. The CDC also says that little is known about the types of bacteria and other potential pathogens that might be carried by these fish and the potential risks that they might pose to customers. The procedure has now been banned not only in Nevada, but in other states and Canadian provinces as well because of sanitary concerns.The Nevada State Board of Cosmetology has determined that fish pedicures are not permitted in Nevada under the Board’s health and safety regulations. This is primarily because the Nevada Administrative Code requires that before use on a patron, “all hair and other adherent foreign material must be removed from the instrument, implement or other tool;
and the instrument, implement or other tool must be: thoroughly washed with soap and hot water; rinsed in clear hot water; and placed in a covered wet sanitizer which is large enough for complete immersion of the instrument, implement or other tool, and which contains an infection control solution that is registered with the Environmental Protection Agency and approved by the Board. During each service, all instruments, implements and other tools must be kept free of contamination by immersion in an infection control solution approved by the Board. All disinfected instruments, implements and other tools that are not in use and not in the process of wet disinfection in a wet sanitizer must be stored in a clean, dry sanitizer. A dry sanitizer consists of a clean, closed container, drawer or storage unit with a fumigant that contains only disinfected instruments, implements and other tools.” The Board has also concluded that the use of live fish does not allow foot basins or tubs to be adequately cleaned and disinfected as required by law.