Cryotherapy entrepreneurs regret death, but welcome scrutiny to industry

They regret the reason for the scrutiny, but some cryotherapy entrepreneurs welcome the spotlight that's been thrown on their industry.

Cryotherapy company leaders are among those expressing condolences to the family of Chelsea Patricia Ake-Salvacion, 24, who was found dead Oct. 20 in a cryotherapy machine at the south Las Vegas Valley business where she worked. She had closed shop the night before at Rejuvenice, 8846 S. Eastern Ave. Another employee found her body the next day.

State officials closed that and two other locations of Rejuvenice for insurance-related reasons. Nevada doesn't have regulations for cryotherapy devices.

"Somebody needs to regulate this in some way, shape or form," said Mark Murdock, managing partner of CryoUSA, a Dallas company that sells and services cryotherapy units. "Because if someone was regulating this, or if Rejuvenice had gone through our simple training, we wouldn't be talking about this incident.

"We're basically self-policing ourselves to this point."

Had established protocols been followed, Ake-Salvacion's death could have been prevented, Murdock and other cryotherapy business people said. The proper operation of the equipment poses few risks to users who say the treatments help their bodies detoxify, improve circulation, and reduce pain and inflammation.

Cryotherapy's rise in popularity

The popularity of whole body cryotherapy began to rise about five years ago when professional sports teams started offering supercolled chambers as an alternative to ice baths for the players.

Some athletes say short exposure to air temperatures below negative 140 degrees enhances recovery after exercise and helps rehabilitation after injury.

The regimen has been touted by boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr., who lives in Las Vegas, and LeBron James said he dealt with nagging injuries during the NBA playoffs by employing a liquid nitrogen freezing unit that can reach around minus 300 degrees.

Users have their vitals checked and fill out a health survey. Then they take off most of their clothes and don protection for their hands, feet and ears.

They step into the cryotherapy unit with only their heads exposed. The air in the unit is cooled by the release of liquid nitrogen. Fog from the nitrogen-cooled air pours out of the unit as if the user was standing in a vat of water with dry ice inserted.

Cryotherapy businesses operate independently without a national organization or regulating body. The number of centers nationwide probably is approaching 300. Murdock of CryoUSA lists the 170 centers his company has sold units to, and Majestic Cryo, a Richardson, Texas company, lists its 20 clients.

Cryohealthcare in Los Angeles is the U.S. distributor of Juka's Cryosaunas, but company officials were unavailable this week to confirm whether Rejuvenice received its equipment from them.

US Cryotherapy in Roseville, Calif., uses electric-refrigerated walk-in chambers, which do not use liquid nitrogen to achieve the desired temperatures.

Most of the machines are made in Europe, and the first unit was imported to the United States in 2009. Majestic Cryo and Impact Cryotherapy of Atlanta make cryotherapy units in the U.S. today.

Cryotherapy has not been tested or approved by any U.S. regulatory agency for the treatment of illness or disease, and people are cautioned to use at their own risk. Doctors and athletic trainers say no evidence show cryotherapy works any better than or even as well as less expensive ice baths, and no cryotherapy operator should be tout any medical benefits of the procedures.

Murdoch agrees that websites that claim cryotherapy strengthens the immune system, has anti-aging effects or boosts metabolism tarnishes his industry. Cryotherapy helps the body recover from strenuous sports activities, and that's why athletes choose it over an ice bath, Murdoch said.

The companies have policies and procedures they pass on to their clients.

Rule No. 1: Never engage in treatment alone.

"We have a three-hour safety training course that every operator must go through," Murdoch said. "They must take a test on which they must score a minimum of 80 percent to pass."

Anyone who misses questions must correct their tests to help ensure they have full comprehension of the process.

Health Care professionals often imply that any exploration of alternative medicine means abandoning conventional approaches. That cryotherapy is frowned upon by the medical establishment comes as no surprise to Yoojin Lee-Sedera, owner of Red Rock Natural Medicine.

"That's something I face all the time," Lee-Sedera said. "Science has done a lot of good, but to ignore the benefits people achieve from other therapies and approaches is unfair."

Investigation in Las Vegas

The state Department of Business and Industry is reviewing safety standards and practices at businesses using cryotherapy equipment because of lingering questions about about public and workplace safety.

Officials say they want to ensure the businesses are utilizing best practices and industry-specific safety standards.

Metro homicide detectives also are reviewing the evidence gathered during the initial response when patrol officers reported Ake-Salvacion's death appeared to be accidental. Police hope the detectives can help clear up the details.

Two law firms have been retained by the woman's mother, Patty Ake-Takaba, to deal with the media and investigate whether the death was the result of a product defect involving the cryotherapy machine where her body was found.

Last week, one of those attorneys, Richard Harris of Las Vegas, said he had yet to gain access to the Rejuvenice facility where Ake-Salvacion. Harris said he thinks she was found in a Cryosauna made by Juka, a company based in southern Poland.

Three Rejuvenice locations in the Las Vegas area remain closed after they were shuttered by state officials because the owners lacked business and cosmetology licenses and state-mandated proof of worker compensation insurance.

At least two other cryotherapy centers continue to operate in Las Vegas, and they, too, offered condolences last week for Ake-Salvacion's death.

TruFusion and Sub Zero Recovery Las Vegas continued offering cryotherapy services last week, and neither business had been contacted by state officials conducting their safety review.

Attempts to reach officials with Rejuvenice or the public relations firm that represents the business, Allied Integrated Marketing, have been unsuccessful. Juka has not responded to an email seeking comment.

Contact Steven Moore at smoore@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4563. Follow him on Twitter at @steve_smoore_rj