Head Lice Treatments and Prevention Guide

Nov 21
08:28

2012

mehboob talukdar

mehboob talukdar

  • Share this article on Facebook
  • Share this article on Twitter
  • Share this article on Linkedin

Head lice are small insects that live amongst the hairs on your scalp and neck. They are NOT a serious health problem and it is rare that they will cause anything but an itchy scalp.

mediaimage
Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}

They are on the other hand,Head Lice Treatments and Prevention Guide Articles embarrassing and extremely uncomfortable and should be treated as soon as possible. Head lice can prove difficult to treat mainly due to their high infestation rate and their ability to develop a resistance to the more traditional insecticides that are contained in some medications. Once you have confirmed that there is a head lice infestation, you can easily treat the lice at home using a lice comb and the wet combing method or by using medicated lotions.

 

Wet combing removes the head lice by systematically combing the hair using a special fine-toothed comb. Your pharmacist can advise you on which combs are suitable. The success of this method depends on you adopting a painstaking approach which will involve regular and thorough combing. The alternative method is to use a medicated lotion or spray. Again your pharmacist will be able to recommend an over-the-counter product. Make sure you have enough lotion to treat everyone in your family who is affected and use enough lotion or spray to coat the scalp and length of the hair during each application. If the lice appear to be unaffected by the lotion/spray or if the problem persists seek advice from your pharmacist.

 

You probably won’t realise you have head lice until your scalp becomes itchy. You will probably get a tickling or itchy feeling and you may develop a rash behind your ears and at the back of your neck which is a reaction to the louse faeces. An itchy scalp does not always mean you have head lice, so do not start with any head lice treatments until you have been diagnosed.

 

You only have head lice if you find a living louse on your scalp. They can be hard to see but if you use a special, fine-toothed comb you can comb your wet or dry hair to confirm whether or not you have them. You should check all members of your household so that you know who will need head lice treatments.

 

There are a number of head lice treatments available that are very effective and you can either use an insecticide treatment or wet comb the hair. At Victoria Pharmacy we have a number of over the counter insecticide head lice treatments and our pharmacist is always available to offer you advice if you are unsure about the head lice treatments you should be using.