A Portland nail salon is facing a $2.5 million lawsuit after a customer alleged she contracted genital herpes during an acrylic manicure appointment, marking the second such infection reported at the business in recent years. The plaintiff, a 31-year-old woman identified in court documents as J.S., filed the complaint in a local court, naming both PDX Nails and state regulatory bodies as defendants.
According to the court filings, the infection occurred during a visit last year. J.S. stated that the nail technician did not wear gloves while working on her hands or while administering a hand massage using lotion or oil. Just a day after the appointment, she experienced an unusual burning and stinging sensation along the side of her hand and pinky. The following day, an itchy, fluid-filled blister formed and lingered for days.
“It’s quite embarrassing,” J.S. told local reporters. “I just went to get my nails done.” When she showed the lesion to acquaintances and mentioned where she had received the manicure, they informed her about a previous legal dispute involving the same establishment.
Court documents reveal that just a month prior to J.S.’s appointment, PDX Nails had settled a lawsuit with another customer, identified as S.R., who claimed to have contracted the same infection in 2023. That previous $1.75 million suit was resolved in July of the following year for an undisclosed sum. J.S. maintains in her complaint that she had no prior exposure to the virus before visiting the salon.
Because the virus has no cure, J.S. reported suffering from subsequent outbreaks despite taking antiviral medications designed to reduce flare-ups. As a mother, she expressed severe emotional distress, noting that she now lives in constant fear of transmitting the virus through physical touch and has resorted to wearing gloves while changing her baby’s diaper. “I’m worried that I might mess up somebody else’s life because of this,” she said.
In addition to the business itself, the current lawsuit targets the Oregon Health Authority and the Health Licensing Office, accusing state regulators of incompetence. The complaint alleges that officials failed to revoke the salon’s cosmetology license or take adequate preventative measures following the initial 2023 infection.
State records show that PDX Nails operates two locations in Portland. One of the sites was penalized in 2021 by the state’s Health Licensing Office and Board of Cosmetology, receiving two separate $500 fines for failing to disinfect used tools that come into direct contact with clients, leaving used drilling bits on a workstation, and failing to properly clean foot spa equipment. However, state officials confirmed that the business has not incurred any further violations or fines since 2021.
Representatives for PDX Nails declined to comment on the pending litigation, while the Oregon Health Authority did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
