Fish pedicures could spread HIV

Copyright © yamada kazuyuki, Creative Commons




The UAE Ministry of Health has issued a warning advising against the use of fish pedicures, saying people who use them could contract serious diseases, such as HIV and hepatitis.

Dr Amin Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Medical Practices and Licences at the ministry, told the Dubai-based Khaleej Times: "The use of these fish pose a health threat, because it may cause the spread of several diseases, and the viral infections such as hepatitis and even HIV/Aids.

"People suffering from skin diseases might infect others easily, since open wounds can contaminate the water as well as the fish that absorb the dead cells."

Al Amiri said that if used for medicinal purposes, the fish needed to be kept in tanks with UV sterlisers and automatic water changers.

The use of fish to treat skin conditions such as psoriasis has its origins in Turkey, where warm pools are stocked with a small cyprinid fish called Garra rufa, which nibbles flakes of skin from the body. The species is found in Jordan, Syria and Turkey.

Now the treatment is offered in beauty parlours around the world, including the UK. It is illegal in Texas.

Garra rufa is legally protected from commercial exploitation, but has recently been bred in captivity.

The species is difficult to correctly identify and some dealers may have been selling other species in their place.

Recent media reports have shown chin chin fish being used as a cheaper alternative for fish pedicures. These are the fry of large-growing Tilapia cichlids, and they have sharper teeth and grow much faster and larger than Garra rufa.

Ouch

lol wow thats not healthy at all

I'm guilty of sticking my hands in the small cichlid tanks at work and letting them nibble away It feels pretty cool.... till a big one swims up

UAE is absolutely wrong about HIV. It will not live in water or dead cells. It is passed through bodily fluids and has to enter the body through an open breaks in the skin. UAE is known to pass laws that are shall we say not kosher! I'm sre you can catch other diseases but not HIV. There is a skin eating bacteria that is ramped in nail salons all around the world.

WOW

Is anyone else curious about the amount of hair on this person's toes in the picture?

thats some hairy toes!

its interesteting to know that it is possible to spread diseases from our fishy friends doing our pedicures now, i wonder if it has happened yet and it has been documented?

fishvixen, that is some scary stuff to know about the eating skin bacteria in nail salons. my wife goes to one every 2-3 weeks, should i tell her about it, do you think its in the states too?

Yes it's in the states!

Outlawed in Va and NC remember seeing a special about this on Opera....HMMMMM wonder if those people could sue here if they get sick....

That's correct on the HIV, the virus can only stay viable 20 minutes or so outside of the warmth of a human host. Fish host just doesn't work.

Hmmmm, wonder if I can make money letting people dip hands in my panfish tank? They also like to nibble. Just watch out for the crayfish!

wildbeanerz wrote:

Is anyone else curious about the amount of hair on this person's toes in the picture?

Scared me! With the title I thought fish were getting pedicures and wondered where they got the feet.

my shrimp give me manicures however I do practice safe reefing you will never see my feet or hands in someone elses tank!:) well atleast not without some latex gloves.

cwhip wrote:

my shrimp give me manicures however I do practice safe reefing you will never see my feet or hands in someone elses tank!:) well atleast not without some latex gloves.

lol

Plus latex is so fashionable now a days!

WOW I had never heard of fish pedis. I never would have thought that fish could transfer stuff either. Yuck.

That is freaky......

Oh yes peppermint shrimp are fun to let pick on your hands

The fishy tuberculosis can be caught by us and vice versa...... I was exposed when I was 6 but never go it, but test positive on the prick test, best we can figure is it came from my tank......

FishVixen wrote:

Plus latex is so fashionable now a days!

so i've heard

prick test?? oooohhh scary

Tb is very contagious in tanks. Just a small break in the skin and humans can get it. A really nasty open sore that takes months to heal. I've seen it on a friend and it was gross.

ooh gross!