Pakistan is facing a deepening HIV crisis that now implicates a rapidly growing aesthetic industry including beauty salons, barbershops, and cosmetic clinics. These venues, expanding across urban and semi-urban areas, often operate without basic hygiene standards or proper sterilization procedures. Instruments such as scissors, razors, microneedles, and needles—used in treatments like waxing, manicures, microneedling, and injectable therapies—are frequently reused without thorough cleaning, presenting serious risks for HIV and other blood-borne diseases.

Public health experts warn that many aesthetic procedures in the country are being performed by individuals without formal medical training. Hair transplants, skin treatments, cosmetic injections, and even microneedling may be conducted in unregulated settings, without certified professionals or proper infection control protocols. Clinics may lack qualified oversight, increasing the potential for disease transmission.

Regulatory focus in Pakistan has traditionally prioritized hospitals, blood transfusions, and high-risk groups, while community-level venues like salons and cosmetic centers remain largely ignored. This gap has allowed HIV to spread quietly through areas previously considered low risk. Experts argue that a comprehensive response is urgently needed—one that expands beyond familiar hotspots to include hygienic enforcement at the grassroots level.

Recommended interventions include mandatory training for all beauty and clinic workers on HIV transmission and sterilization practices, licensing and regular inspections by health authorities, and public education campaigns to raise awareness about risks associated with unregulated cosmetic procedures. Authorities also need to crack down on cosmetic centers operating without dermatologists or formal medical oversight, similar to closing illegal aesthetic clinics in other cities.

Without rapid action, Pakistan risks losing control of this stealthy and preventable vector of HIV infection. Immediate enforcement, training, and awareness are essential to protect public health.