Head lice infections , also known as pediculosis capitis and nits , are head and scalp head infections by head lice ( Pediculus humanus capitis ). Itching due to tick bites is common. During a person's first infection, the itch may not develop for up to six weeks. If a person is infected again, symptoms can start much faster. Itching can cause problems with sleep. Generally, however, this is not a serious condition. While hair lice appear to spread some other diseases in Africa, they do not seem to do so in Europe or North America.
Hair lice are spread by direct contact with the hair of an infected person. The cause of lice infestation is not related to cleanliness. Other animals, such as cats and dogs, do not play a role in transmission. Head lice only eat human blood and only survive in human head hair. As adults, the length is about 2 to 3 mm. When not attached to humans, they can not live more than three days. Humans can also be infected with two other ticks - body lice and lice crabs. To make the diagnosis, live ticks must be found. Using a comb can help detect. Empty egg shells (known as nits) are not sufficient for diagnosis.
Possible treatments include: combing hair frequently with a good tooth comb or shaving head completely. A number of topical medications are also effective, including malathion, ivermectin, and dimethicone. Dimethicone, which is a silicone oil, is often preferred because of the risk of low side effects. Pyretroid-like permethrin is commonly used; However, it becomes less effective due to increased pesticide resistance. There is little evidence for alternative medicines.
Head lice infestation is common, especially in children. In Europe, they infect between 1 and 20% of different groups of people. In the United States, between 6 and 12 million children are infected a year. They are more common in girls than boys. It has been argued that historically, head louse infections are beneficial, as they are protected from more dangerous body lice. Infestation can lead to stigmatization of an infected individual.
Video Head lice infestation
Signs and symptoms
Head lice are generally uncomfortable, but they are usually not a serious condition. The most common symptom is itching of the head, which usually worsens 3 to 4 weeks after initial infestation. The bite reaction is very mild, and it is rarely seen between the hair. Bites can be seen, especially in individual long-haired necks when hair is removed. Swollen local lymph nodes and fever are rare. Itching can cause skin damage and cause bacterial infections.
In Ethiopia, head lice seem to be able to spread typhoon-born epidemic typhoid and Bartonella quintana. In Europe, hair lice do not seem to carry this infection.
Maps Head lice infestation
Cause
Head lice are commonly spread by direct head-to-head contact with an infected person. Transmission by sharing a bed or clothing like a head cover is much more common. The cause of lice infestation is not related to cleanliness. Hair length or how often brushed hair affects the risk of infection.
Body lice are spread by direct contact with body, clothing, or other personal items from someone who has brought lice. Pub lice most often spread through intimate contact with an infected person. Head lice occur in head hair, body lice in clothing, and pubic lice especially in the hair near the groin. Fleas can not penetrate the skin.
Other lice that attack humans are body lice and lice crabs. The claws of these three species are tailored to the attachment to a particular hair diameter.
Diagnosis
This condition is diagnosed by finding live ticks in the hair. Finding empty eggs alone is not enough. This is made easier by using a magnifying glass or combing the child's hair. In a questionable case, a child may be referred to a health professional. However, this condition is overdiagnosed, with extinct infestations misinterpreted as active infestation. As a result, louse killing treatments are more commonly used in uninfected children than infected children. Use of flea comb is the most effective way to detect live ticks. With both methods, special attention should be paid to the area near the ear and nape of the neck. The use of a magnifying glass to examine the material collected between the comb teeth can prevent misdiagnosis.
However, the presence of egg alone is not an accurate indicator of active head lice attacks. Generally, egg whites are empty egg casings, while the chocolate nite may still contain a decent tick larvae. One way to determine nit is to squeeze it between two fingernails; this gives a typical pop bluff sound during an egg burst. Children with hair nits on their hair have a 35-40% chance of being infected with lice and live eggs. If ticks are detected, the whole family needs to be checked (especially children up to the age of 13) with a tick combo, and only those infected with live ticks should be treated. As long as no live ticks are detected, the child should be considered negative for head lice infestation. Therefore, a child should be treated with pediculises only when live ticks are detected in their hair (not because he has an egg/egg louse on his hair and not because of itchy scalp).
Prevention
Regular periodic head examination using tick lice allows the diagnosis of lice infestation at an early stage. Early diagnosis makes treatment easier and reduces the possibility of infecting others. In times and areas where flea infestations are frequent, weekly screening of children, especially those aged 4-15 years, done by their parents, will help control. Additional checks are needed if the child is in contact with an infected individual, if the child is often scratching his head, or if nits suddenly appear in the child's hair. Keeping long hair tidy can help in the prevention of infestation with hair lice.
Clothes, towels, beds, combs, and brushes, which come into contact with an infested individual, can be disinfected either by letting it outside for at least two days or by washing it at 60 ° C (140 ° F) for 30 minutes.. This is because adult lice can only last one to two days without eating blood and are heavily dependent on the warmth of the human body. Insecticidal treatment of homes and furniture is not necessary.
Treatment
There are a number of effective treatments for head lice. These methods include combs, shaving, medical creams, and hot air. Medical creams usually require two separate weekly treatments. Flea is not a justification for keeping children away from school because of the low risk of spreading.
Mechanical action
Shaving the head can effectively treat ticks. Combing wet several times a day for several weeks can also get rid of infestations in half of people. This requires the use of a special tick combs with good extra teeth. This is the recommended method for infants and pregnant women.
Another treatment is the use of hot air applied by hair dryers.
Drugs
There are many drugs that can kill lice. Dimethicone is between 70 and 97% effective with low side effects, and thus is seen as a preferred treatment. It works in a physical way and there is no evidence of pesticide resistance. Ivermectin is about 80% effective, but can cause local skin irritation. Malathion has an effectiveness of about 90%, but there is the possibility of toxicity. Pyretroid-like permethrin, while commonly used, has a lower effectiveness because of resistance among ticks. The effectiveness varies from 10 to 80%, depending on the population under study. The medicines in the lotion seem to work better than those in the shampoo. Benzyl alcohol looks effective but it is unclear whether it is better than standard treatment.
Alternative medicine
Tea tree oil has been promoted as a treatment for head lice; However, there is no clear evidence of its effectiveness. A 2012 review of head louse is recommended against the use of tea tree oil for children because it can cause skin irritation or allergic reactions, due to contraindications, and due to lack of knowledge about the safety and effectiveness of oil. Other home remedies, such as putting vinegar, isopropyl alcohol, olive oil, mayonnaise, or melted butter under a bath cap, have proven to be untrue. The CDC states that swimming has no effect on ticks, and may decrease the effectiveness of some treatments.
Environment
After treatment, people are often instructed to wash all the beds and empty all the head areas that may already exist, such as car seats, coat hoods, and sofas, but this is not always necessary, because the adult lice will die within 2 days without blood. eating, and newly hatched dead lice within minutes after hatching. Comb and brush can be watered in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. Items can also be frozen for 24 hours well below the freezing point of water to ensure that ice crystals form inside the lice cells.
Epidemiology
The number of cases of human lice infestation (or pediculosis) has increased worldwide since the mid-1960s, reaching hundreds of millions each year. It is estimated that between 1 and 20% of certain groups in Europe are infected.
Despite improvements in medical care and the prevention of human disease during the 20th century, head lice infestations remain stubborn. In 1997, 80% of American primary schools reported at least one flea epidemic. The infestation of lice during the same period is more common than chicken pox.
Approximately 6-12 million children between the ages of 3 and 11 are treated annually for hair mites in the United States alone. High rates of lice infestation have also been reported from around the world, including Israel, Denmark, Sweden, Britain, France and Australia.
The number of children per family, the division of beds and cabinets, hair washing habits, local customs and social contacts, health care in certain areas (eg schools), and socioeconomic status were found to be significant factors in head lice infestation. Children between 4 and 13 years old are the most frequently infected. In the US, African-American children have lower rates of infestation.
The National Health Service of the United Kingdom and many American health agencies report that ticks "prefer" to clean the hair because it is easier to stick eggs and stick to strands; However, this is often contested.
Head lice ( Pediculus humanus capitis ) infestations most commonly occur in children ages 3-10 and their families. Women get ticks twice more often than men, and infestations in Afro-Caribbean or other blacks are rare due to hair's consistency. But these children may have hatching lice eggs and live ticks that can be transferred through head contact to other children.
Society and culture
- Go to Louse (above the women's hat). Perhaps the most recognizable cultural reference for pediculosis capitis, occurs in the famous poem by Robert Burns.
Other animals
Flea infestations are generally known as pediculosis, and occur in many species of mammals and birds. Lice that infest other host species are not the same organisms that cause flea infestation in humans, nor are there three bugs infesting other human species.
References
External links
- CDC: Headache
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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