PARENTS GUIDE TO HEAD

LICE

Head lice are not an indicator of low socioeconomic status or a sign of poor hygiene. They affect children across all

levels of income, social class, and cleanliness. Lice can survive underwater for up to six hours, so kids who bathe

and shampoo regularly are just as vulnerable. The good news is lice are

not carriers of any disease.

NOVATO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT

1015 Seventh Street • Novato, California 94945 TEL: (415) 897-4267 • FAX: (415) 897-4238

http://nusd.org

Dr. Shalee Cunningham, Superintendent

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Debbie Butler, President Derek Knell, Vice President

Maria Aguila Cindi Clinton

Thomas Cooper Ross Millerick Shelly Scott

SPECIAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT Liz Smith, Director

Student Health Services

Linda Brosh, R.N. Elizabeth Marin, R.N. Gail Howard, R.N.

Lice Life Cycle Actual size of the three lice forms compared to a penny. (CDC Photo)

Sources: American Academy of Pediatrics Clinical Report, 2010 Guidance on Head Lice Prevention and Control for School Districts and Child Care Facilities, CDHP 2012 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010 Images - WebMD

Rev 12/2014

“No healthy child should be excluded from or allowed to miss school time because of head lice.”

- American Academy of Pediatrics

WHAT ARE HEAD LICE?

1. Permethrin (Nix®) is the least toxic lice treatment and is recommended as one of the drugs of choice. Pyrethrins (RID) should be avoided by people allergic to chrysanthemums and those sensitive to ragweed.

2. Read and follow the directions carefully. Do not leave the product on for a longer time than recommended; it will not kill the lice faster.

3. Treat all household members who have live head lice. Do not split a single box of shampoo or rinse between people. It may take 8-12 hours for lice to die after treatment.

4. It is not necessary to remove nits for your child to return to school. Combing and removal of nits may help to reduce the duration of infestation. CDPH recommends the combination of treatment and nit combing. To remove eggs daily, use a metal nit or flea comb until all eggs are removed.

5. Recheck your child’s hair in 7-10 days for live lice. If there are live lice, then retreat. Retreatment is recommended on day 9-10 to kill any surviving, hatched lice before they produce new eggs.

6. You may need to inspect your child’s hair for up to three weeks. If lice persist after two treatments, contact your health care provider.

7. At home, bed linens should be laundered. Only items in contact with the head of person infected within 24-48 hours before treatment should be considered for cleaning.

Head lice are small insects that live in people’s hair. They are commonly found in children 3-12 years old. Children of this age often play together closely with more hair-to-hair contact. Lice do not spread disease in humans. They glue their eggs "nits" to the hair and take six to nine days to hatch. Then it takes seven or more days for the lice to become egg-laying adults. Head lice die quickly (within two days) without blood or warmth from the human scalp. Therefore, lice and their eggs cannot live very long away from a child’s head.

HOW DO PEOPLE GET HEAD LICE? Lice usually spread through direct head-to-head contact. Lice cannot hop, jump, or fly from one person to another. Lice can also survive for a short period on clothing or other personal items, so, although rare, can spread through contact with personal belongings of an infected individual (combs, brushes, hats). Children are more likely to get lice from household members and playmates than from classmates at school.

Young children often play with hair-to-hair contact.

Part and look through your child’s hair if you suspect head lice.

A live louse shown near the scalp.

A live louse shown in the hair.

PREVENTION

It is probably impossible to totally prevent head lice infestations. Students should avoid head to head contact. Although it is rare to spread lice by way of non-living objects, it is prudent to teach your child to avoid sharing personal items such as combs, brushes, and hats.Your best defense is to examine your child's hair and scalp regularly, so you can catch an infestation early. Prompt treatment will help prevent the lice from spreading. There is a lack of evidence showing that routine class or school-wide screening reduces lice infestation rates (Frankowski, 2010). Parents should report any active cases of lice to the school.

TREATMENT

HOW DO I KNOW IF MY CHILD HAS LICE? The only way to know if your child has an active case of head lice is to look through the hair find live lice. Lice can be detected by parting the hair and examining near the scalp, most commonly near the ears and the back of the neck. The presence of nits does not indicate an active case of head lice. Do not confuse dirt or dandruff with eggs. Viable eggs can only live within 1/4” from the scalp.