Dealing with Summer Head Lice

Just hearing the words ‘head lice’ can make your head feel itchy. Then hearing your child has or has been exposed to them is enough to send any caregiver into a panic.

But before you start shaving heads and burning bedding, you should know that lice do not constitute a medical emergency.  They do not transmit disease and, with a bit of patience, are treatable.

Before we dive into how to treat them, let’s talk about what they are, their lifecycle, and how to identify them.

Head lice are wingless insects that feed off blood on the scalp. The grayish or tan adult lice are about the size of a sesame seed. while their pearl-color eggs, often called nits, are about a quarter of that size. A mature or adult head louse can lay up to 10 eggs a day. The pinhead-sized nits hatch in about seven to 12 days and grow quickly, reaching adulthood in about seven days. As adults, lice live between three to four weeks with females laying anywhere between 50-300 eggs in their lifetime. Hence, the reasons to  be proactive on getting rid of them quickly.

Because they can’t fly, lice move from person to person by crawling across bedding; hitching a ride on helmets, hats, clothing, and shared combs or brushes; or moving from scalp to scalp during sleepovers or camp.

The most noticeable symptom of lice is intense itching of the scalp, which is the result of an allergic reaction to the bites. Beyond being extremely annoying, the bites usually aren’t problematic but can become so if the irritated skin become infected from excessive scratching.

If you notice your child regularly scratching their head or, you get a notice from a camp or other program that there is a lice infestation, you should do an immediate inspection. This involves carefully examining the scalp for adult lice and looking for eggs, which will be found firmly attached to strands of hair. Again, they’re tiny, so be thorough and methodical in your inspection and examine the entire scalp.

If you find lice, takes steps to treat them immediately before they spread throughout your household.

First, invest in a lice comb. Found both online and in local pharmacies, lice combs differ from regular combs in that the teeth are very close together which helps remove both adult and nits as you comb.

Effective combing involves the following:

• Wet the hair. If your child has long hair, apply a conditioner or even olive oil for easier combing.
• Using a wide-tooth comb, divide the hair into sections.
• Switching to the lice comb, comb through each section, working from the scalp to the end of hair.
• Wipe the comb off on a wet paper towel between each comb to inspect and remove any lice or nits.
• Continue to comb the entire head in this manner and repeat until you no longer find nits or lice.

If you find an adult louse or nit, continue to comb your child’s head daily (or twice daily) until you don’t find any more signs of life. You should comb daily for two weeks from the time the last adult was found.

In addition, if you find lice on your child, everyone in the home should be treated in the same manner as a precaution.

As for the items in your home, wash any clothing, bedding, hats, car seat covers, and towels worn or used by your child in hot water (at least 130°F) and dry on high heat to kill any stray lice or nits. For items that can’t be washed or dried at high heat—delicate fabrics, stuffed animals, etc., seal them in a plastic bag for at least two weeks. Hairbrushes and combs should be soaked in water for at least eight hours (fun fact: lice can hold their breath for eight hours so don’t rush this process). Alternatively, you can put brushes and combs in a Ziploc bag and place in the freezer overnight to kill lice and eggs.

Be sure to vacuum any furniture or floors where your child has spent time.

While there are numerous—often expensive—lice treatment products available, over the counter and by prescription, the truth is many to most lice have evolved and developed a resistance to the chemicals intended to kill them. You can save yourself some money and avoid any potential side effects from chemical treatments by performing the wet combing method as described.

Lynn Mann, MD, is a pediatrician at SVMC Northshire Campus.