Head Lice A NitPickin Nuisance

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Head Lice A Nit-Pickin Nuisance
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What are Head Lice?

• Insects that live and reproduce on your head
• Head lice feed on blood from your scalp
• Head lice are a common nuisance, but are not
  considered a health hazard

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Who can get Head Lice?

• Anyone who has close head-to-head contact with
  someone who has head lice
• More common among preschool elementary
  school-aged children their families
• Personal hygiene or cleanliness in home or school
  has nothing to do with getting head lice
• Head lice cannot live on pets or animals, only on
  humans

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How do Head Lice Spread?

• Head lice crawl quickly from one head to another
  when in close contact
• Head lice cannot fly, jump or hop
• Head lice can be
• transferred when personal
• objects are shared
• (e.g. combs, brushes, hats)

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Recognizing Head Lice

• Tickling feeling on scalp
• Itchy scalp
• Feeling of something moving in the hair
• Irritability
• Sores on head from scratching
• Presence of nits (eggs), nymphs or adult head lice

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What do they look like?

• Adult head lice
• Tiny wingless brown insects size of a sesame
  seed
• Live for about 20 days
• If a louse crawls off of a
• head, it dies within 2 days

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What do they look like?

• Nymphs
• Are baby head lice
• Smaller than adult
• head lice
• Mature in about 1
• week

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What do they look like?

• Nits (eggs)
• Tiny specks about the size of a knot in thread
• Firmly attached to the hair close to the scalp
• Usually found on the hair behind the ears, at the
  back of the neck, and above the forehead
• Do not mistake for dandruff, which can be easily
  blown off

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Treating Head Lice

• Ask your pharmacist for a recommended treatment
  product
• Only use treatment when nits or head lice are
  present
• Head lice products do not prevent head lice
• Follow product instructions carefully to avoid
  re-infestation

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Treating Head Lice

• Products kill the head lice and many eggs
• A second treatment is needed 7 to 10 days after
  the first treatment to kill any newly-hatched
  lice before they mature

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Steps to Treating Head Lice

• Before applying treatment shampoo childs hair
  over a sink with regular shampoo
• Do NOT use conditioner or combination
  shampoo/conditioner
• Many products require you to damp-dry hair with a
  towel or blow dryer

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• Wear plastic or rubber gloves to avoid
  unnecessary exposure to treatment product
• Wrap a towel tightly over the childs eyes to
  protect them

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• Apply the head lice product according to product
  directions
• Timing is important
• If product is rinsed off too soon, head lice and
  nits may not be killed
• If left on too long, there is unneeded product
  exposure

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• Rinse childs hair under tap, not in shower or
  bath, to minimize product exposure on the rest of
  the body
• Wash your hands well after using product
• Do not re-wash hair for several days after
  treatment

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Treating Head Lice

• A second treatment is required 7 to 10 days later
  to kill any newly-hatched lice
• If you see live head lice 24 48 hours after
  treatment, then immediately treat again with a
  different product

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Treating Head Lice

• Talk to your family doctor
• If a child is under the age of 2
• If you are pregnant or breastfeeding
• If a person has a seizure disorder
• If a person has broken or infected skin on the
  scalp
• If lice are on eyebrows, eyelashes or facial hair

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General Product Information

• Follow the directions
• Timing is important
• Do not mix products
• Rinse childs hair under tap
• Products should not be used near the eyes, nose,
  or mouth

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General Product Information

• Wear plastic or rubber gloves
• Wash your hands after using product
• Store products away from children
• Do not apply to open or infected skin

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Treating Head Lice

• All nits should be removed after treating with
  product
• Head lice products are not 100 effective they
  may not kill all of the nits
• Removing nits
• will reduce hatching of eggs that were not killed
  with treatment
• will allow you to notice if a new infestation
  occurs

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• To remove nits
• Part and lift hair to check for nits or lice
• Work under a good light (window or lamp)
• Live lice can be removed with scotch tape wrapped
  around your finger

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• To remove nits
• Use fine-tooth nit comb
  or thumbnail/first finger
  to grab nit slide it off hair
  shaft
• Place nits in a plastic bag when done, seal or
  tie up the bag and put in garbage
• Take frequent breaks, especially with young
  children
• Check remove nits daily for 2-3 weeks

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Treating Head Lice

• Avoid home remedies no scientific proof of
  effectiveness
• Do not use flea control products, turpentine,
  paint thinner, etc.
• If your child has head lice, tell the
  school/child care facility childs close
  contacts immediately to prevent further spread

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Housecleaning

• Wash in hot, soapy water
• Headwear, combs, brushes, pillowcases, towels,
  bed sheets
• Excessive housecleaning is unnecessary
• Do not use insecticide sprays

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Controlling the Spread of Head Lice

• Discourage head-to-head contact and sharing of
  hats, scarves, brushes, combs and headwear
• Check heads of all people in close contact
• Treat all family members with head lice at the
  same time

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Controlling the Spread of Head Lice

• Check young school-aged children weekly for head
  lice more often if there is an outbreak
• If head lice continue to return, call your local
  health unit

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Recommended Websites

• Centre for Disease Control
• http//www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/lice/facts
  ht_head_lice.htm
• Canadian Paediatric Society
• http//www.caringforkids.cps.ca/whensick/HeadLice.
  htm
• University of British Columbia
• www.healthcare.ubc.ca/lice/intro.html

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• Harvard School of Public Health
• www.hsph.harvard.edu/headlice.html
• American Academy of Pediatrics
• http//aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/reprint/p
  ediatrics110/3/638.pdf
• Please note that information about head lice
• varies among sources

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For more information
Huron County Health Unit 77722B London Rd, RR
5 Clinton, ON N0M 1L0 519.482.3416 or
1.877.837.6143 www.huroncounty.ca

• Used with permission of the Perth District Health
  Unit