Scabies - Overview
What is scabies?
Scabies is a very itchy skin condition caused by tiny mites that burrow into your skin. See a picture of scabies.
Scabies can affect people of all ages and from all incomes and social levels. Even people who keep themselves very clean can get scabies.
How is scabies spread?
Scabies mites spread by close contact with someone who has scabies. Scabies can also be spread by sharing towels, bed sheets, and other personal belongings.
Scabies often affects several family members at the same time. You can spread it to another person before you have symptoms.
What are the symptoms?
Scabies causes severe itching that is usually worse at night. Small children and older adults tend to have the worst itching. Children typically have worse skin reactions.
If this is the first time you have had scabies, it may be several weeks before you have itching and skin sores. But if you have had it before, symptoms will probably start in a few days.
How is scabies diagnosed?
A doctor can usually diagnose scabies based on your symptoms. Scabies is especially likely if you have had close contact with other people who have had similar symptoms.
Sometimes a doctor confirms a diagnosis by looking for signs of mites on a sample of your skin. The doctor gently scrapes some dry skin from an affected area and then looks at it under a microscope. This test is not painful for most people.
How is it treated?
Scabies will not go away on its own. You need to use a special cream or lotion that a doctor prescribes. In severe cases, your doctor may also give you pills to take.
Some scabies medicines are not safe for children, older adults, and women who are pregnant or breast-feeding. To avoid dangerous side effects, be sure to follow your doctor’s instructions carefully.
If you have scabies, you and anyone you have close contact with must all be treated at once. This keeps the mites from being passed back and forth from person to person. You must also carefully wash all clothes, towels, and bedding.
After treatment, the itching usually lasts another 2 to 4 weeks. It will take your body that long to get over the allergic reaction caused by the mites. If you still have symptoms after 4 weeks, you may need another treatment.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Lice - Overview
What are lice?
Lice are tiny insects that live on humans and feed on blood. When a large number of lice live and multiply on a person, it is called an infestation.
Three different kinds of lice live on humans:
· Head lice are usually found in hair, most often on the back of the neck and behind the ears. Head lice are common in preschool and elementary school-age children. Adults can get them too, especially adults who live with children.
· Pubic lice , also called crabs, are usually found in the pubic area. But they may also be found on facial hair, on eyelashes, on eyebrows, in the armpits, on chest hair, and, rarely, on the scalp.
· Body lice live and lay eggs (nits) in the seams of clothing. The lice are on the body only when they feed.
What causes a lice infestation?
Lice spread easily from one person to another through close contact or through shared clothing or personal items (such as hats or hairbrushes). A louse cannot jump or fly.
What are the symptoms?
The most common symptom of lice is itching. There are different symptoms, depending on which type of lice you have.
· Head lice may not cause any symptoms at first. Itching on the scalp may start weeks or even months after lice have started to spread. Scratching can make the skin raw. The raw skin may ooze clear fluid or crust over, and it may get infected.
· Pubic lice cause severe itching. Their bites may cause small marks that look like bruises on the torso, thighs, or upper arms. If pubic lice get on the eyelashes, the edges of the eyelids may be crusted. You may see lice and their eggs at the base of the eyelashes.
· Body lice cause very bad itching, especially at night. Itchy sores appear in the armpits and on the waist, torso, and other areas where the seams of clothes press against the skin. The lice and eggs may be found in the seams of the person's clothing but are generally not seen on the skin.
Frequent scratching can cause a skin infection. In the most severe cases of head lice, hair may fall out, and the skin may get darker in the areas infested with lice.
How is a lice infestation diagnosed?
A doctor can usually tell if you have lice by looking closely for live lice or eggs in your hair. He or she may look at the lice or eggs under a microscope to be sure.
Your doctor can also find pubic lice and body lice by looking closely at your body or your clothing.
How is it treated?
The most common treatment is an over-the-counter or prescription cream, lotion, or shampoo. You put it on the skin or scalp to kill the lice and eggs. In some cases, you may need treatment a second time to make sure that all the eggs are dead. If two or more treatments don't work, your doctor may prescribe a pill called ivermectin.
It’s also important to wash clothing and bedding in hot water to help get rid of lice.
Some people have an allergic reaction to lice bites that causes itching for 7 to 10 days after the lice and eggs have been killed. Steroid creams or calamine lotion can relieve the itching. If you have severe itching, antihistamine pills may help. But don't give antihistamines to your child unless you've checked with the doctor first.
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