Doing What’s Best for Kids

Students AP 318 - Appendix B: Head Lice Steps for Effective Treatment

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Steps For Effective Treatment

THE PROCESS DESCRIBED BELOW MUST HAPPEN EVERYDAY UNTIL NO LIVE LICE OR NITS ARE FOUND. IT IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED THAT YOU MAKE VISUAL HEAD LICE CHECKS A WEEKLY PART OF YOUR CHILD’S HYGIENE ROUTINE. EFFECTIVE COMBING AND NIT PICKING IS ESSENTIAL TO SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT

HEAD LICE TREATMENTS

  • Lice treatments should only be used on persons who have LIVE lice. If you have just a few nits and no live lice then treatment products may not be necessary.
  • A product that does not contain pesticides such as Nyda or Resultz is recommended.
  • ALL products also require combing the lice and nits out. Combing along with nit picking is essential, no matter which treatment you use. It is the combing and manual removal of the nits and lice that gets rid of the infestation, even if you use strong treatments.
  • Read instructions for each product – some go on damp (not wet) hair, some on dry hair.
  • Always use a clean towel to dry hair after treatment and wash towel before reusing.
  • Put clean clothes on after treatment.
  • Wait 24 hours before regular shampooing of hair.
  • Lice may not die immediately. Chemical treatments work for 7-10 days after use.
  • For 7-10 days do not use hair dryers, hair conditioners, vinegar rinses and avoid chlorinated swimming pools.
  • Children can return to school the next day after treatment, as long as no live bugs or nits are seen.
  • If live bugs are still present within 48 hours, retreat with a DIFFERENT product. When no live bugs are found retreat within 7-10 days with the same product.

NIT PICKING ESSENTIALS

A COMBINATION OF COMBING AND NIT PICKING IS THE MOST ESSENTIAL STEP FOR LICE CONTROL

  1. TIME - Take the time look and be thorough.
  2. GOOG LIGHTING – Sunlight is the best however you may improvise with head lamps, bright floor light or craft lights. Good light will enable you to see the nits and live lice better.
  3. COMB – A good metal comb such as the Nit Free Terminator Comb or LiceMeister is essential. These are much better for lice and nit removal than the combs that come with some treatment products and will save you time.
  4. A towel to cover the shoulders that can be washed or disposed of after nit picking.
  5. Paper towels for removing nits/lice from the comb between combing.
  6. Choose an area without carpeting and preferably near a sink.

NIT PICKING METHOD # 1 (Without a Lice Comb)

  1. Divide hair into 4 equal quadrants.
  2. Place hair into hair clips and/or elastics.
  3. Beginning with the right lower quadrant take a small portion of hair at the nape of the neck.
  4. Check thoroughly for nits (eggs) and live lice, especially nymphs (newly hatched nits) that look like scabs or lightly coloured moles.
  5. Using fingernails, manually remove both nits live lice from hair and scalp.
  6. Kill live lice by pressing down hard.
  7. Discard tissue into garbage bag.
  8. Repeat steps 3-7 for each quadrant.
  9. Seal up garbage bag and discard.
  10. Sterilize comb, clips and elastics in hot boiling water for at least 15 minutes.*
  11. Remove and let air dry. CAUTION: Keep boiling water away from younger children to avoid burns. Do not leave combs or clips in water overnight as they will become damaged and/or rusted.
    * You may add a tsp. of bleach to the water or some tea tree oil drops.
  12. Vacuum area and floor after nit picking (change vacuum bag after).
  13. Wash hands.

NIT PICKING METHOD # 2- USING THE LICE COMB

  1. Divide hair into 4 equal quadrants.
  2. Place hair into hair clips and/or elastics.
  3. Beginning with the right side of the lower quadrant take a small portion of hair at the nape of the neck.
  4. Comb quadrant with comb in four directions: downward, upward and in both directions across the scalp. CAUTION: DO NOT press into scalp.
  5. After first downward motion wipe both sides of comb on a tissue or paper towel.
  6. Apply pressure on live lice including nymphs (newly hatched nits) that resemble rust to brown coloured moles or scabs.
  7. Discard tissue with nits (eggs) and dead lice into sealed up garbage bags.
  8. Repeat this step until you visually can see no nits either on the hair strand and tissue. At this point you may want to manually remove any remaining nits that you see on the strand of hair.
  9. Now take another small portion of hair and repeat until quadrant is finished.
  10. Proceed with upward direction and repeat steps 5-9
  11. Proceed then with the across side to side direction.
  12. REPEAT steps 5-9 in ALL the quadrants.
  13. REPEAT steps 9-13 of METHOD #1 for cleanup and sterilization of all tools used.

Online Video Resources

How to identify head lice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrScqdNuTpchttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrScqdNuTpc
How to remove head lice safely https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o75oLlVgKcE
How to use a lice comb https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gBQN5P1xEM#t=125