Portland woman claims she felt burning sensation on her hand after manicure. Now she’s accusing the nail salon of giving her herpes
This is the second time the nail salon has been accused of passing herpes.
Going to get your nails done at a nail salon should be a relaxing, self-care experience. But for one woman, her recent nail appointment allegedly resulted in her developing a health problem. Now, she’s suing the Portland, Oregon, nail salon for millions, accusing them of giving her herpes. Notably, this isn’t the first time the salon has faced such an accusation.
PDX Nails on NE Glisan St. in Portland is facing a $2.5 million lawsuit by a 31-year-old former customer, who claimed to have been infected with the virus when she was receiving an acrylic nail manicure at the store on Aug. 1, 2025. The complaint, filed with the Multnomah County Circuit Court on Monday, alleged that the nail technician did not wear gloves during her manicure, according to KOIN.
The woman claimed she began to feel ill and an “unusual burning and stinging sensation” along the outer side of her right hand and pinky finger the day after the appointment. By Aug. 3, her hand had turned “itchy,” and a “fluid-filled blister began to form.” The condition of her hand allegedly didn’t get any better, so she received treatment at her primary care clinic on Aug. 12—11 days after her manicure.
Portland nail salon faces second herpes allegation
Medical professionals initially suspected the woman had herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), but could not confirm it as they were unable to obtain a sample of the blister. An additional examination the following month confirmed she was positive for genital herpes, which the woman claimed she did not have before the nail appointment. The woman also said she had not had a manicure at a nail salon three to four years before she went to PDX Nails.
This isn’t the first time the nail salon has been accused of giving its customers an infection. The woman’s attorney in the case, Amity Girt, had also filed a lawsuit on behalf of another client in 2024, who claimed to have contracted herpes after getting her nails done at PDX Nails in 2023.
In the 2024 lawsuit, the woman claimed the “infection was painful,” and the diagnosis had caused a “great deal of distress” for her, according to Law&Crime. “She was told the infection could continue to come back, and that there is no cure for herpes.”
The lawsuit sought $1.75 million in damages. The case was settled in May 2025, though the final amount the nail salon had to pay remains unclear. The woman in the current lawsuit said she was unaware of the nail salon’s past herpes accusation, according to Girt.
The newest allegation, however, has brought more scrutiny to PDX Nails’ safety and sanitation standards. The nail salon’s owners, Tam and Hai Nguyen, had previously been fined for neglecting to properly follow health and sanitation requirements, such as properly disinfecting tools, and failing to provide adequate training to their nail technicians.
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