The head louse is a small, wingless parasitic bug that lives among human hairs and feeds on tiny amounts of blood drawn from the scalp. Lice (the plural of louse) are a very typical issue, particularly for kids. They're infectious, irritating, and in some cases tough to get rid of.
While they're irritating to deal with, lice aren't hazardous. They don't spread disease, although their bites can make a kid's scalp scratchy and inflamed, and scratching can result in infection.
It's best to treat head lice quickly as soon as they're discovered since they can spread easily from person to person.
Signs of Head Lice
They're really small, lice can be seen by the naked eye. Here are things to search for:
Lice eggs (called nits). These look like tiny yellow, tan, or brown dots prior to they hatch. Lice lay nits on hair shafts near the scalp, where the temperature level 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 child'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 remains 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 (child lice). The adult louse is no larger than a sesame seed and is grayish-white or tan. Nymphs are smaller and become adult lice about 1 to 2 weeks after they hatch. If head lice is not treated, this process repeats itself about every 3 weeks. Most lice feed upon blood numerous times a day, and they can make it through as much as 2 day of rests the scalp.
With lice bites come itching and scratching. The itching may not constantly begin right away-- that depends on how sensitive a kid's skin is to the lice. It can in some cases take weeks for kids with lice to begin scratching.
Small red bumps or sores from scratching. For some kids, the irritation is moderate; for others, a more irritating rash may develop. Excessive scratching can cause a bacterial infection (this can trigger swollen lymph glands and red, tender skin that may have crusting and exuding). If your physician believes this is the case, he or she may deal with the infection with an oral antibiotic.
You may be able to see the lice or nits by parting your kid's hair into little 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 find a nymph or adult louse-- frequently, there aren't a lot of them and they move fast.
See your medical professional if your kid is constantly scratching his or her head or experiences a scratchy scalp that won't disappear. The physician ought to have the ability to inform you if your child is plagued with lice and needs to be treated. Not all kids have the classic signs of head lice and some can be symptom-free.
Be sure to examine with your child's school nurse or child care center director to see if other kids have recently been dealt with for lice. If you find that your kid does, certainly, have lice or nits, call the personnel at the school and child care center to let them know.
Are Lice Contagious?
Lice are extremely infectious and can spread out rapidly from person to person, particularly in group settings (like schools, childcare centers, slumber parties, sports activities, and camps).
Though they can't fly or leap, these small parasites have specially adapted claws that let them crawl and cling strongly to hair. They spread out generally through head-to-head contact, however sharing clothing, bed linens, combs, brushes, and hats also can pass them along. Kids are most vulnerable to capturing lice since they tend to have close physical contact with each other and share personal items.
And you might question if Fido or Fluffy may be capturing the bugs and passing them on to your family. But felt confident that family pets can't catch head lice and pass them on to people or the other way around.
Treatment
Your medical professional can recommend a medicated shampoo, cream rinse, or cream to kill the lice. These may be non-prescription (OTC) or prescription medications, depending upon what treatments have actually currently been tried. Medicated lice treatments typically kill the lice, however it might take a few days for the itching to stop. For extremely resistant lice, an oral medication (medicine taken by mouth) might be prescribed.
Make sure that the medicine is safe for your child's age. While over the counter hair shampoos are safe for kids as young as 2 months, other medications are only safe for kids 2 years and older.
Treatment may be unsuccessful if the medication is not utilized properly or if the lice are resistant to it. After treatment, your medical professional may suggest combing out the nits with a fine-tooth comb and likewise might advise repeating treatment in 7 to 10 days to kill any recently hatched nits.
Eliminating By Hand
If your kid is 2 months old or more youthful, you ought to not use medicated lice treatments. You'll need to eliminate the nits and lice by hand.
To eliminate lice and nits by hand, utilize a fine-tooth comb on your kid's wet, liceremovallosangelescare.com conditioned hair every 3 to 4 days for 3 weeks after the last live louse was seen. Wetting the hair in advance is suggested due to the fact that it momentarily immobilizes the lice and the conditioner makes it easier to get a comb through the hair.
There's no need to buy electronic combs that declare to kill lice or make nits simpler to get rid of. You likewise do not need to buy special vinegar options to use to the scalp before picking nits.
Wet combing is likewise an option to pesticide treatments in older kids. Petroleum jelly, mayo, or olive oil are sometimes used in an attempt to suffocate head lice, these treatments may not work. If medication does not work and you wish to try these techniques, speak to your medical professional initially.
Make certain you remove nits carefully weekly for a minimum of 3 weeks in a row, and see your child closely 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