Scabies. Pediculosis.
Scabies is an itchy skin condition caused by a tiny burrowing mite called Sarcoptes scabiei. The mites are transferred from person to person by close bodily contact. Once on the skin, fertilized female mites burrow through the stratum corneum at the rate of about 2 mm per day, and produce two or three oval eggs each day. These turn into sexually mature mites in 2–3 weeks. The generalized eruption of scabies, and its itchiness, are thought to be caused by a sensitization to the mites or their products.
The burrows or tracks typically appear in folds of skin. Though almost any part of the body may be involved, in adults and older children scabies is most often found between the fingers, in the armpits, around the waist, along the insides of the wrists, on the inner elbows, on the soles of the feet, around the breasts, around the male genital area, on the buttocks and on the knees. In infants and young children, common sites of infestation usually include the scalp, palms of the hands and soles of the feet.
❖ Symptoms:
For the first 4–6 weeks after infestation there may be no itching, but thereafter the pruritus begins and is most severe at night.
- Excoriated, eczematized or urticarial papules – on the trunk
- Thin, irregular burrow tracks made up of tiny blisters or bumps on your skin;
❖ Complications:
- Secondary infection
- Repeated applications of scabicides can cause skin irritation and eczema.
- Persistent itchy red nodules may remain on the genitals or armpits of children for some months after adequate treatment
- Venereal disease may be acquired at the same time
❖ Diagnosis:
- Examination of the skin
❖ Treatment:
- Use an effective scabicide
- permethrin cream - For babies over 2 months, toddlers and young children
Pediculosis is infestation with the human head-and-body louse, Pediculus humanus. There are two subspecies, the head louse (P. h. capitis) and the body louse (P. h. humanus). Lice are flattened wingless insects that suck blood. Their eggs, attached to hairs or clothing, are known as nits. hey are ectoparasites whose only known hosts are humans. The main feature of all lice infestations is severe itching, followed by scratching and secondary infection.