Salon-special head massage: Here's why you should be alert about 'beauty parlour stroke'

The complimentary head massage with haircuts is probably the most relaxing thing you could enjoy at Indian salons. However, recently, a youngster in Bengaluru had a scary experience after the hair dresser twisted his neck during the head massage. The thirty-year-old man, who got his hair cut at a salon in Whitefield, suffered a stroke after the head massage. After his neck was twisted, he experienced apraxia of speech when he reached home and was rushed to the nearby hospital. He couldn’t even raise his left hand. Subsequent examinations proved beauty parlour stroke, which is triggered by head massages or head wash at the beauty salons.

What is beauty parlour stroke?
Dr Alexander Thomas, an orthopaedic surgeon at Bengaluru, says that strokes happen when the blood vessels get pressed or injured during massage, blocking the blood supply to the organs in the body. In such cases, the patient must be rushed to the hospital and administered life-saving treatment. Moreover, he suggests creating awareness among hairdressers and beauty parlour employees about this condition to ensure safer methods.