Lice! Lice!

It can happen anywhere, any school, any neighborhood. Your child could be sent home with a note saying they have head lice, and require a doctor’s note before returning to school. When it happens, it can spread like wildfire from child to child, and they don’t have to even “rub heads!” You dirty louse! That old saying just cracks me up!

A head louse is a tiny, wingless parasitic insect that lives among human hairs and feeds on extremely small amounts of blood drawn from the

scalp. Although they may sound gross, lice (the plural of louse) are a very common problem, especially for kids ages 3 years to 12 years (girls more often than boys). Have a lice infestation of the hair isn’t dangerous and they don’t spread disease. Their bites may cause a child’s scalp to become irritated and itchy and if untreated, may lead to an infection.

Even though lice are tiny, you can still see them with the naked eye. Look for little white bugs crawling up and down individual hairs, near the scalp. Also look for the egg sacks called nits. See the picture:

All louse infestations are treated in 2 stages, the same way. First we need to killlive lice. Then we crush and/or remove the nits (eggs) hanging onto the hairs. There are lots of OTC medicated shampoos that will kill the lice, without causing the child harm. Follow the instructions on the bottle. It usually just a shampoo and rinse. Even if you go to the doctor, he most likely will recommend the over the counter brand Rid.

After medicating, you want to remove all the nits (eggs) and any remaining critters with a good lice comb. A lot of times, it comes as a kit. Lice infestations are different than say, scabies. The lice die quickly if they aren’t on your body. For that reason, it’s unnecessary to wash all the sheets and pillow and such. Also, since body lice are easily treated by simply washing clothes the following information pertains to head and pubic lice only.