A FATHER suffered a devastating stroke after having his hair cut.

Dave Tyler who suffered damage to his vertebral artery while his hair was being washed, is now calling for better training for salon staff.

The 45-year-old, of St Leonards Road, Hove, said he hoped more salons would become aware of what has been dubbed beauty salon stroke syndrome and that the industry would introduce better guidelines.

He said: "It's rare but it happened to me. There is a general problem in the industry that there's a lack of awareness and training on that side.

"It has been documented in the medical journal Lancet."

Doctors believe sound engineer Mr Tyler suffered a blood clot whilst having his hair cut at the Headmasters salon in New Road, Brighton in 2011.

Two days later he collapsed during a business meeting having suffered a stroke.

The father of two has been left with problems with his sight which means he can no longer drive.

He also has problems with his balance and sensations of pain and temperature as a result of the stroke.

He does not know what the long term effects on his health may be.

He said: "When it first happened I had no idea what was going on.

"I went into intensive care and they were trying to find out what caused it and the neurologist said 'have you had a hair cut?'

"He had gone through a list of possible causes - had I played rugby or been in a car crash.

"I had had my hair cut on the Monday two days before and had a headache that night.

"I try not to make a big deal about it. I try to get on with life. But it has had a huge impact on all of us and there is a public awareness issue that not many people know this can happen.

"For me it is not about compensation, it is about the industry."

The stroke-risk from using salon sinks can be reduced by using padded cushions and proper protection, but many salons and hairdressers are unaware of the life threatening dangers.

Headmasters has paid Mr Tyler an out of court settlement, but he said he did not blame the hairdresser involved or salon and just hoped his case could spare others the same fate.

He said: "You need adequate padding. It's a very delicate part of the neck.

"There are plastic cushions they can put around the edge of the sink but cutting corners and just putting a towel down isn't enough.

"There doesn't seem to be any formal training but juniors are quite often left to wash customers' hair and they need to be taught properly

"It happened to me and it's recently happened to a woman in Hampshire. It wasn't a one off."

Headmasters did not respond to The Argus' request for a comment.