Vegas cryotherapy spa investigated after Pinay worker found dead

LAS VEGAS — Nevada regulators said Wednesday they will investigate safety and other issues involving the use of cryotherapy after a Las Vegas spa employee was found dead in a cold chamber intended to treat pain and other conditions.

The review will look at whether businesses that use cryotherapy equipment are protecting clients from possible harm, said Teri Williams, a spokeswoman for the Nevada Division of Industrial Relations.

The increasingly popular but largely unregulated treatment involves subjecting people to brief periods of sub-zero temperatures.

The Nevada review was launched a week after 24-year-old Chelsea Patricia Ake-Salvacion was found dead inside a cryotherapy chamber at the Rejuvenice spa where she worked.

Ake-Salvacion had apparently used a machine after hours on Oct. 19 and was discovered the next day by a co-worker inside the chamber about the size of a phone booth. Albert Ake said his niece was frozen solid.

Police found nothing suspicious and closed the case without a criminal investigation.

"Based on developing information ... questions about public and workplace safety within this relatively new industry have lingered," Steve George, administrator of the Division of Industrial Relations, said in a statement.

The state is compiling a list of businesses where the machines are used. At least one other cryotherapy center operates in Las Vegas, unrelated to Rejuvenice.

No timeline has been established for when the results of the review will be made public.

Investigators intend to examine equipment, interview employees and managers who operate it, and review published information from regulatory agencies and other sources.

The state will also speak to manufacturers and trade and industry groups about the function of the treatment favored by celebrities and sports stars.

Athletes who have long used ice baths to ease their pain have turned to whole body cryotherapy as a quicker way to recover after exercise or competition.

The treatment also is promoted as aiding weight loss, improving healing and increasing blood circulation, leading some salons to offer cryotherapy facials as an anti-aging remedy.

Rejuvenice booked 30-minute cryotherapy sessions for about $100. A discounted fee of $60 also was available.

Nevada Occupational Safety and Health investigators have said Ake-Salvacion should not have been using the cryotherapy chamber after hours for personal use, said Williams, the state spokeswoman.

"The facts indicate that the fatality occurred as a result of employee misconduct or non-compliant activity," Williams said. "The employer cannot be cited ... and further investigation is not warranted."

Attempts to reach the spa's owners Christian Chateau and Kevin Goujon have been unsuccessful.

Two Rejuvenice locations in Las Vegas and unincorporated Clark County were ordered closed Tuesday after authorities said the operation lacked local and state cosmetology licenses as well as state-mandated proof of worker compensation insurance.