Archive for the 'lice epidemic' Category

Summer Camp Lice Prevention

headlice July 29th, 2008

There is a widespread lice problem in summer camps this Summer. Licenders has provided screenings to prevent lice in overnight camps in the mountains of New York, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. When a child arrives at camp with head lice, the result can be a massive lice epidemic. Lice are notoriously catchy. The camp environment, with kids and adults interacting so closely, increases the opportunities for the lice nits to transfer from one head to another. Lice can easily spread to hundreds of campers in such conditions. For camp staff and administrators, a lice epidemic is a nightmare!

The way to approach this headlice threat correctly, is lice prevention. Licenders recommends that everyone who comes up to camp be screened for lice nits right away. If the lice checking can be done before the kids participate in any activities, this is ideal. The idea is, to find anyone with a lice problem, and treat the lice before they have a chance to spread to anyone else. Effective lice treatment, including proper lice combing can be provided to individual head lice cases immediately. Passing up this intial time for lice checking can result in a significant interruption of camp. Hundreds of kids could ultimately need to be treated because of a few isolated cases of untreated head lice.

In addition, licenders provides a lice nits re-check after a change in camp session, as new campers may again introduce lice into the summer camp population. If there is a significant opportunity for campers to interact closely with outsiders, another lice check is highly advised. This would apply after a camp visiting day, when parents and siblings come in contact with their loved ones, possibly bringing undetected lice bugs and nit eggs along with them.

Lice Information from a Pediatrician

headlice June 4th, 2008

This article appeared on THE HOOK, the web site of a Charlottesville, Virginia Newspaper by the same name. It is posted here with permission from the author, Dr. John Hong, a reknowned physician with a local pediatric practice in Charlottesville.

  

DR. HOOK- Nit picking: Pediculosis can louse up a day
 

by JOHN HONG, MD
published 5/15/2008 12:00:00 AM

"I'm hairy noon and night. Hair that's a fright. I'm hairy high and low. Don't ask me why. Don't know" (Hair, the musical).

 

At my school, Denison University, when we produced Hair, they actually had a nude scene, though the lights were spinning all over the place, and I could tell a bum bum from a tum tum. But there was a lot of hair! What if some of it had lice?

 

Don't laugh! When I saw a different musical, Naked Men Singing, one guy had a fungal infection, tinea versicolor, and another was recovering from shingles. I almost jumped up on the stage to apply creams. Yikes!

 

Pediculosis is the medical term for lice, and there are three types: pediculosis humanus capitus (head lice), pediculosis corporis (body lice), and phthirus pubis (pubic lice, aka "crabs"– or in royal circles King Crabs– hmm). 

 

Head lice are most common in kiddies, and in fact lice is the #2 communicable disease in North American elementary school students! In 1997, one in four had head lice at some point. The louse doesn't jump or fly, so it's contracted by direct contact between folks– through sharing clothes, hats, combs, headphones, beds, towels, etc.
 
Even hanging jackets besides each other in the classroom can spread lice, because the louse can survive away from a human body for 55 hours.

 

To Be Continued

 

 

© Dr. John Hong, Inc

 

 

N.Y. Times: Licenders Head Lice Prevention Experts

headlice May 22nd, 2008

continued from Sports Headgear and Lice Prevention 

When the coach of the Little League in Dobbs Ferry, New York advised team parents to purchase individual batting helmets, to prevent lice, The New York Times reported it in their health section on April 27, 2008. The Times consulted with LICENDERS, recognized as the experts in head lice treatment, as quoted in the article:

" 'We are seeing more cases of lice that are resistant to over-the-counter treatments,' said Leah Hartman, manager for the Westchester division of LICENDERS, a professional lice removal service that serves many area schools.' "

"Ms. Hartman said that more than 50 percent of calls to her office are for repeat cases, incidents of head lice that have not been eliminated with the use of an over-the-counter product. '[Lice Prevention] is a key step,' she said."

"Rare is the school that has not dealt with head lice, said Susan Gretczko, a registered nurse who works at the Concord Road Elementary School in Ardsley. '[Head lice problems are] rampant everywhere', she said. 'The only way we are going to stop this [head lice problem] is to take measures like insisting on individual helmets,' ”

As we have stated repeatedly, head lice spread among children very quickly. When a lice infested child shares any items used on the head, the lice have the opportunity to crawl from the head, to the object, and subsequently onto another child's head. Under these circumstances, an outbreak of head lice is inevitable. We applaud these Westchester residents for their pro-active approach to preventing head lice in their communities.

Sports Headgear and Lice Prevention

headlice May 21st, 2008

Recently, more adults involved in activities for children are recognizing that they can make a difference in the prevention of head lice. On April 27, 2008, an article appeared in the New York Times health section addressing the likelihood of a head lice outbreak among healthy, active children. The author, Juli S. Charkes relates how a local litte league coach, in advising his team of the rules and regulations of the season, also advised them to purhase personal batting helmets. His reason: to prevent head lice!

Normally, a couple of helmets suffice for the group, as they are passed on to the team members when it is their turn at bat. The article quotes a number of child care professionals in and around the town of Dobbs Ferry who agreed with the concerns of coach Robert Birnbaum, regarding a head lice outbreak.

“ 'As a coach, I would not want to be responsible for the spread of lice,' [Mr. Robert Birnbaum] said outside his home," which in Westchester, New York. 

It turns out, that this advice was well received by other child care professionals in and around Dobbs Ferry, the town in Westchester that is home to this particular little league.

" 'I think individual helmets make sense not only for [human head lice], but also just in terms of basic hygiene,' said Ellen M. Whalen, a Yonkers pediatrician who watched her 6-year-old son Nico, clad in his own shiny red helmet, hit a ball off the tee."

The Times' continues, "As the Little League administrator for District 21, which includes Yonkers, Mount Vernon, Pelham and New Rochelle, Michael Mattesi overseas about 400 teams. He said he had been contacted many times by schools in his district when there is an outbreak of head lice and has encouraged the use of individual helmets, as well as the use of baseball caps under any shared helmet."

" 'Absolutely, it just makes a lot of sense,' he said. 'These helmets are affordable — often less than $20 — and I encourage parents to invest in one.' ”

(to be continued)

Nits, Lice and School (part 3)

headlice May 7th, 2008

continued from No Nit Policies in Schools (part 2)

A child who is actively being treated for head lice, using an effective method should not be kept out of school. Live lice bugs will have already been killed. At this point, the chances of nits and nymphs in the hair is greatly reduced. Even if there are stray nits, lice eggs can not crawl from one head to another.

Active treatment should include a 2 week maintenance period, with daily comb-outs to remove any possible stray nits as well as nymphs that may have just hatched. Until 2 weeks are past, there may still remain a few stray nits in the hair, which can hatch into tiny nymphs. By using a lice comb daily, even this small risk is being addressed. A tiny nit or nymph that is missed at first will grow, and certainly be caught in a subsequent comb-out. By the time 10 days have passed, the lice incubation period is over. Any nits that may still be on the head can not be viable: in other words, they will never hatch into live lice. The lice nit treatment can be considered complete since there was no opportunity for a louse to survive to maturity.

The lice infested child who has been treated, should have her hair tied back during this 2 week maintenance period. She should have strict instructions about not sharing any head gear, and should keep her accessories in a contained place, apart from any other children. Children can understand that by doing their part, and acting responsibly, they can prevent another child from getting head lice, and transfering it back to themself! No child wants to have a reinfestation, and undergo a full lice treatment all over again. When a child understands that these cautions will benefit themselves in the long run, they are more likely to cooperate.

School nurses should be aware of the lice nit treatment process, so that they do not over-react to finding a few stray nits on a child who is actively undergoing a proper 2 week treatment protocol. Other parents should also understand the head lice treatment process for the same reason. A no-nit policy allows for the school administration to ensure that children found to have lice or nits will undergo a proper comprehensive treatment to remove the lice and nits, without spreading the lice problem and creating a widespread lice epidemic.