The head louse is a tiny, wingless parasitic insect that lives among human hairs and eats small quantities of blood drawn from the scalp. Lice (the plural of louse) are a really typical problem, particularly for kids. They're contagious, annoying, and sometimes tough to eliminate.
While they're frustrating to deal with, lice aren't hazardous. They don't spread disease, although their bites can make a child's scalp itchy and irritated, and scratching can lead to infection.
It's best to deal with head lice rapidly as soon as they're discovered due to the fact that they can spread out quickly from person to person.
Signs of Head Lice
Although they're extremely small, lice can be seen by the naked eye. Here are things to look for:
Lice eggs (called nits). These look like small yellow, tan, or brown dots prior to they hatch. Lice lay nits on hair shafts close to the scalp, where the temperature is best for keeping warm till they hatch. Nits look sort of like dandruff, just they can't be eliminated by brushing or shaking them off.
Unless the infestation is heavy, it's more common to see nits in a kid's hair than it is to see live lice crawling on the scalp. Lice eggs hatch within 1 to 2 weeks after they're laid. After hatching, the staying shell looks white or clear and stays strongly connected to the hair shaft. This is when it's most convenient to find them, as the hair is growing longer and the egg shell is moving away from the scalp.
Adult lice and nymphs (infant lice). The adult louse is no bigger than a sesame seed and is grayish-white or tan. Nymphs are smaller sized and end up being adult lice about 1 to 2 weeks after they hatch. If head lice is not dealt with, this process repeats itself about every 3 weeks. Many lice eat blood a number of times a day, and they can survive as much as 2 days off the scalp.
Scratching. With lice bites come itching and scratching. This is in fact due to a reaction to the saliva of lice. The itching might not constantly begin right away-- that depends on how delicate a child's skin is to the lice. It can sometimes take weeks for kids with lice to start scratching. They may grumble, however, of things moving on or tickling their heads.
For some kids, the irritation is mild; for others, a more bothersome rash might develop. If your medical professional believes this is the case, he or she may treat the infection with an oral antibiotic.
You might have the ability to see the lice or nits by parting your kid's hair into small sections and checking for lice and nits with a fine-tooth comb on the scalp, behind the ears, and around the neck of the neck (it's unusual for them to be found on eyelashes or eyebrows).
A magnifying glass and intense light might help. However it can be difficult to discover a nymph or adult louse-- typically, there aren't many of them and they move fast.
See your doctor if your child is constantly scratching his or her head or suffers a scratchy scalp that won't go away. The medical professional must be able to tell you if your child is plagued with lice and needs to be treated. Not all kids have the classic symptoms of head lice and some can be symptom-free.
Also be sure to contact your kid's school nurse or childcare center director to see if other kids have actually just recently been treated for lice. If you discover that your kid does, undoubtedly, have lice or nits, contact the personnel at the school and childcare center to let them know. Discover what their return policy is. Many normally allow kids to return after one topical treatment has been completed.
Are Lice Contagious?
Lice are highly infectious and can spread out quickly from person to person, particularly in group settings (like schools, child care centers, slumber parties, sports activities, and camps).
Though they can't fly or jump, these tiny parasites have actually specially adjusted claws that let them crawl and cling firmly to hair. They spread generally through head-to-head contact, but sharing clothes, bedding, combs, brushes, and hats also can pass them along. Kids are most prone to capturing lice due to the fact that they tend to have close physical contact with each other and share personal products.
And you may question if Fido or Fluffy may be catching the bugs and passing them on to your household. Rest guaranteed that animals can't capture head lice and pass them on to people or the other method around.
Treatment
Your medical professional can suggest a medicated hair shampoo, cream rinse, or cream to kill the lice. These might be over-the-counter (OTC) or prescription medications, depending upon what treatments have already been attempted. Medicated lice treatments typically eliminate the lice, but it might take a few days for https://liceremovallosangelescare.com the itching to stop. For extremely resistant lice, an oral medication (medication taken by mouth) might be prescribed.
Make sure that the medication is safe for your kid's age. While non-prescription shampoos are safe for kids as young as 2 months, other medicines are just safe for kids 2 years and older.
Treatment may be unsuccessful if the medication is not used properly or if the lice are resistant to it. After treatment, your medical professional may recommend combing the nits with a fine-tooth comb and also might advise duplicating treatment in 7 to 10 days to eliminate any recently hatched nits.
Getting rid of By Hand
If your child is 2 months old or younger, you need to not utilize medicated lice treatments. You'll need to eliminate the nits and lice by hand.
To get rid of lice and nits by hand, utilize a fine-tooth comb on your kid's wet, conditioned hair every 3 to 4 days for 3 weeks after the last live louse was seen. Wetting the hair in advance is recommended due to the fact that it momentarily immobilizes the lice and the conditioner makes it simpler to get a comb through the hair.
There's no need to purchase electronic combs that declare to kill lice or make nits simpler to eliminate. You likewise do not require to buy special vinegar solutions to apply to the scalp before choosing nits.
Wet combing is likewise an option to pesticide treatments in older kids. Though petroleum jelly, mayo, or olive oil are often used in an attempt to suffocate head lice, these treatments may not work. If medicine does not work and you want to attempt these techniques, speak to your medical professional initially.
Make sure you remove nits carefully weekly for at least 3 weeks in a row, and view your child carefully to see if any live lice return.
For more information, contact:
Lice Removal Los Angeles Care
777 S Alameda St #29
Los Angeles, CA 90021
310-935-1644