This is the old head lice post.
Please see the newer post september 2017
Please see the newer post september 2017
Diagnosis:
Learning that your child has head lice can be incredibly aggravating. Trust me I know.
You
might be suspicious because your child is scratching their head or you
may have gotten a call from school that your child was exposed. It is
rare to actually see the live lice crawling around ( although I was once
measuring a child's height and there was actually a halo of lice
crawling all over her head...ugh, I get itchy just thinking about it)
Once
a child gets head lice, the mature or adult head lice can lay up to 10
eggs or nits each day. These nits, or lice eggs, hatch in about 7 to 12
days. Baby lice or nymphs are about the size of a pinhead when they
hatch, and quickly mature into adult lice in about a 9 to 12 days.
Lice
don't like light and they move very quickly, therefore the diagnosis is
often made by finding the nits. These are small white, opaque or tan
specks that adhere tightly to the hair shaft. If you flick something and
it floats away, it may just be dandruff. The nits are usually close to
the scalp. If they are further down the hair shaft, likely they have
been around awhile undetected.
Check
your child's head in a methodical manner paying special attention to
the areas behind the ears, the nape of the neck and the crown. Make sure
you are in a well lit area. Remember that if one person in the family
is infested, you should check everyone. ( you may be able to feel a nit
on your own hair, it will feel like a tiny little knot)
If you have found some bug or nits, it is time to treat.
There are several good approaches.
Treatment Options:
Here is the least expensive and least toxic way to take care of things.
- loosen the nits with either plain white vinegar or an "egg releaser" product such as Clear. Both Clear and vinegar work well but might neutralize the active ingredient in the Nix ( permethrin) and therefore should be used before the Nix and rinsed out thoroughly.
- Wash hair with Prell Shampoo. Other shampoos with a silicon or lipid based conditioner might coat the lice and eggs and protect them from the Nix
- Towel dry the hair so that it is still damp. Work the Nix through the hair and leave on for 30 minutes. ( ignore the package insert that says 10 minutes)
- Rinse out the Nix and comb out the lice and nits. ( this is usually when you will see dead lice)
- Getting a special Lice Comb will make this job much easier. Metal flea combs from the pet store work, but the best one is probably the Lice Meister comb. (You can find it on Amazon for about $18.) The plastic one that comes with the Nix is pretty worthless.
Nix does NOT seem to be 100% effective so I follow this up with 2 extra steps.
1.If
your child is old enough and cooperative enough to sit still, using a
flat iron ( hair straightener) will sizzle any nits that are left. I
would suggest doing this daily for a week. Take very small sections of
hair at a time.
2. Three days after the treatment with Nix,
soak the entire head with olive oil, cover with shower cap and bandana
and keep on for 3 or 4 hours. This will suffocate any of the hardy
survivors.
Between the Nix, the Flat iron and the olive oil I have had a VERY high success rate of getting rid of lice the first time around.
There is also a new product on the market called SKLICE. This treatment is available only with a prescription. ( the Noe Valley Walgreen's tries to keep it in stock) Sklice is fairly non- toxic. It is approved down to 6 months of age. The cost will vary depending on your insurance plan. Sklice claims that you don't need to do any nit combing after the treatment ( although some schools have a no nit policy)
As of June 2013 you can go to www.SKLICE.COM for a $25 copay coupon.
This website will give you all the directions that you need along with other useful lice info.
As of June 2013 you can go to www.SKLICE.COM for a $25 copay coupon.
This website will give you all the directions that you need along with other useful lice info.
If
money is no object there are companies that will do the treatment and
nit removal for you. These are very effective, but don't kid yourself,
they can be QUITE expensive
If you are local...Hair Fairies-415-292-5900.
Clean up:
Wash
sheets and pillow cases for the first two days after treatment. Wash
towels, recently worn clothing and any hats or hoods that have been in
contact with the lice.
(
Sometimes a trip to a Laundromat that has the big dryers and lots of
machines can help you take care of the clean up more efficiently.)
Items
that can not be washed should be dry cleaned, put in a hot dryer for at
least 30 minutes or placed in a zip lock bag in the freezer for 24
hours. Sealing items in an airtight bag for several weeks is also a
common recommendation, but may not be reliable. Combs and brushes should
be cleaned by soaking in hot water ( about 130*F) for 10 minutes. All
rooms and furniture, including car seat should be vacuumed.
Prevention:
Lice
do not jump or fly. Since they travel by crawling, it is important that
your children learn not to share brushes, hats, hair bows or
headphones.Crowded coat racks are a good way to catch them.
Teach
them to hang their coats separately. If you child is in a class or day
care with a lice outbreak, talk about eliminating any dress up boxes. If
you child has long hair, pull it back into pony tail or braids to
minimize the risk.
Although
it is unproven, some people say that washing the hair on a routine
basis with tea tree oil shampoo or vinegar rinses may act as a
prevention.
Remember
that lice do not care about family income, education, lifestyle or
cleanliness. 10 million Americans are infested each year.
Take
a deep breath, believe it or not there are worse things. I had one mom
who was taking care of her kids head lice when she realized that he also
had pin worms!
*****
Sorry if this post made you scratch your head..
I
don't think there is necessarily a "lice season", but occasionally we
have weeks with a steady stream of calls about this issue.
Those calls have been coming in. There are outbreaks at several Bay Area schools.
Lice are indeed one of the Ten Plagues after all..
Happy Passover/ and Easter to those who celebrate/
Nurse Judy
Update 11/14 There has been a back order on Sklice and we have had a hard time finding it in the SF Bay Area.
I will update when it is widely available again.
You can easily get lice treatment or a pedicullicide from your local chemist store. Also, add a nit comb or a flea comb to your equipment to get rid of lice. Www.TinyLocks.com
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Sklice can be made at home for as little as $5. You can purchase Ivermectin at any Farm Supply store. Mix one syringe of Ivermectin with 2 syringes of any lotion or conditioner and apply and let sit for 10 minutes. You can also make your own Ulefsia. Mix 1 tablespoon of Benzyl Alcohol (I found it on Amazon for $7) with 3 tablespoons of any lotion or conditioner. Apply and let sit sit for 10 minutes. There is NO reason to spend hundreds of dollars for a prescription that every ingredient can be found over the counter. It's just big pharmacy conning everyone.
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