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Head Lice What you need to know... |
What is Head Lice?
Head lice are small, brown to gray parasitic wingless insects that can be found on the head, eyebrows, or eyelashes of people.
Personal hygiene or cleanliness in the home or school has nothing to do with getting head lice.
Personal hygiene or cleanliness in the home or school has nothing to do with getting head lice.
- Head lice comes in three form, eggs (nits), nymph, and adult. Lice lay nits that are grayish white, oval, and stick to the angle of the hair shaft about 1/4 inch from the scalp usually near the nape of the neck. Nits are incubated by body heat and hatch in 10-14 days. Once the eggs hatch, nymphs grow for about nine-12 days and then mate. If there is no treatment, the cycle repeats about every 3 weeks.
How is Head Lice Spread?
- Head lice are spread by direct contact with the hair of an infested person.
Head lice move by crawling. They cannot hop or fly.
Do NOT share clothing (such as hats, scarves, coats) or other personal items (such as combs, brushes, hair ties, or towels) with other people.
Can your Student Attend School?
Yes! Please treat the student's head lice as soon as possible. If you can not treat the hair right away, the live bugs should be combed out daily with a special comb.
How to Treat Head Lice?
Special shampoos and treatment kits can be purchased at any local stores in the pharmacy department.
There are also treatments that can be prescribed by your physician.
When treating your hair, please read the instructions carefully.
You will need to use a special comb to get rid of the eggs on the hair shaft. If you have long hair, this process of combing should take 1 - 1 1/2 hours if you are doing it correctly.
Machine wash in hot water all washable clothing and dry in dryer using high heat for at least 20 minutes. Items that cannot be washed can be bagged in plastic for two weeks to be sure any stray lice or nits have died. Vacuuming is the safest and best way to remove lice or fallen hairs with attached nits from upholstered furniture, mattresses, rugs, stuffed animals, and car seats.
Here are some helpful websites:
http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000840.htm
There are also treatments that can be prescribed by your physician.
When treating your hair, please read the instructions carefully.
You will need to use a special comb to get rid of the eggs on the hair shaft. If you have long hair, this process of combing should take 1 - 1 1/2 hours if you are doing it correctly.
Machine wash in hot water all washable clothing and dry in dryer using high heat for at least 20 minutes. Items that cannot be washed can be bagged in plastic for two weeks to be sure any stray lice or nits have died. Vacuuming is the safest and best way to remove lice or fallen hairs with attached nits from upholstered furniture, mattresses, rugs, stuffed animals, and car seats.
Here are some helpful websites:
http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000840.htm
