“Pediculosis capitis is a recurring problem affecting 6 to 12 millions of children annually; there are no epidemiological data on this subject in the state of Nuevo León, and there are few in México. Therefore, new contributions are needed to design control strategies based on factors that may predispose to head lice infestation… Our results showed that the P. capitis prevalence in Nuevo León is one of the highest in Mexico, that it constitutes a real public health problem, and that there is need to establish prevention programs at home and school to decrease or to control P. capitis with the support of public health authorities.”Biomedica. See the full article: "Pediculus capitis in schoolchildren of the urban area of Nuevo León, México: Analyses of associated factors." …
Identification of Novel Voltage-Gated Sodium Channel Mutations in Human Head and Body Lice (Phthiraptera: Pediculidae)
“In recent years, the increase of head louse infestation in Iran (7.4%) and especially in West-Azerbaijan Province (248%) has raised the hypothesis of insecticide resistance development. There are different mechanisms of resistance to various groups of insecticides, and knockdown resistance (kdr) is a prominent mechanism of resistance to pyrethroids, an insecticide group which is used conventionally for pediculosis control. For detection of kdr-type well-known amino acid substitutions (M815I-T917I-L920F) and additional sodium channel mutations potentially associated with kdr resistance in head and body lice, louse populations were collected from West-Azerbaijan and Zanjan Provinces of Iran.”Journal of Medical Entomology. See full article: "Identification of Novel Voltage-Gated Sodium …
Comparison of the proliferation and excretion of Bartonella quintana between body and head lice following oral challenge
“Human body and head lice are highly related haematophagous ectoparasites but only the body louse has been shown to transmit Bartonella quintana, the causative agent of trench fever. The mechanisms by which body lice became a vector for B. quintana, however, are poorly understood. Following oral challenge, green fluorescent protein-expressing B. quintana proliferated over 9 days postchallenge with the number of bacteria being significantly higher in whole body vs. head lice.”Insect Molecular Biology. See full article: "Comparison of the proliferation and excretion of Bartonella quintana between body and head lice following oral challenge." …
Head lice is more common than you think
“From time to time, head lice infestations become news stories, especially when treatment “failures” occur. You probably feel itchy right now just thinking about them! Head lice, scientifically known as Pediculus humanus capitis, have been around as long human beings have existed. After all, lice need human blood to live.”Guide Health. See full article: "Head lice is more common than you think." …
Lice and bacteria, partners in parasitism
“Head lice have been stigmatized, quickly conjuring images of infested school children and parents combing through their hair. This social stigma reaches many of the estimated 14 million people who are annually infested in the U.S. alone. However, these blood sucking lice have had a long and complex evolutionary history tied to humans and other mammals. In total, there are 532 species of blood sucking lice and each species parasitizes one or just a few mammal species.”MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION (OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS). See full article: "Lice and bacteria, partners in parasitism." …
Lice and their bacterial sidekicks have evolved together for millions of years
“A Florida Museum of Natural History study provides new insights into the complex, shared history between blood-sucking lice and the vitamin-producing bacterial sidekicks that enable them to parasitize mammals, including primates and humans. Lice depend on bacteria to supply essential vitamins missing from blood, their only food source.”Phys.org. See full article: "Lice and their bacterial sidekicks have evolved together for millions of years." …
Lice and their bacterial sidekicks have evolved together for millions of yearsRead More
Louse-borne relapsing fever in a refugee from Mali
“Due to the increasing number of refugees from East Africa, louse-borne relapsing fever (LBRF) has become an emergent disease in Europe. No single case of LBRF has been reported in Europe in refugees from other parts of Africa.”Source: Grecchi C1, Zanotti P2, Pontarelli A3, Chiari E2, Tomasoni LR4, Gulletta M4, Barbui A5, Caligaris S4, Matteelli A2, Castelli F2..Infection. See full article: "Louse-borne relapsing fever in a refugee from Mali." …
Efficacy of Peer Education for Adopting Preventive Behaviors against Head Lice Infestation in Female Elementary School Students: A Randomised Controlled Trial
“Peer education based on HBM (Health Belief Model) is an effective strategy to promote preventive behaviors against pediculosis in among fifth grade female elementary school students in Iran.”Source: Mahdi Moshki, Fereshteh Zamani-Alavijeh, Mehdi Mojadam PLOS ONE. See full article: "Efficacy of Peer Education for Adopting Preventive Behaviors against Head Lice Infestation in Female Elementary School Students: A Randomised Controlled Trial." …
Head Lice Epidemiology, Biology, Diagnosis, and Treatment
“Conflicting information about the proper treatment of head lice has given rise to uncertainty among patients and treating personnel. For example, the reported efficacy of permethrin fell from 97% in the 1990s to 30% in 2010.”Source: Laura Meister, Dr. med. and Falk Ochsendorf, Prof. Dr. med. Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2016 Nov; 113(45): 763–772. See full article: "Head Lice Epidemiology, Biology, Diagnosis, and Treatment." …
Head Lice Epidemiology, Biology, Diagnosis, and TreatmentRead More