Headlice Information

Head Lice Letter for Parents

Dear Parents

I am writing to let you know that a case of head lice has been reported in your child’s class. Within most schools at any one time there will be a small number of children infected with head lice. Infection levels remain fairly constant, but if you can inspect your child’s hair tonight and at least once a week we will be very grateful. If you suspect your child has head lice please report any incidents to the school. Detection and effective treatment of any head lice outbreaks is key to reducing the problem.

Here are a few items of information that may help:

The best treatment for head lice is conditioner and a fine tooth comb. Head lice become resistant to many medications.

Head lice walk from head to head and cannot jump. Tying up long hair in school can help prevent your child catching head lice.

They like all hair, clean and dirty.

You can only remove adult lice with a special comb. The eggs still remain in the hair and will hatch over a period of two weeks if no more are laid. It is important to comb to remove the lice as they hatch. Treatment is needed for a period of several weeks.

Very often the eggs hatching cause more lice – not the child catching them again.

Removal of the oval empty egg cases is of cosmetic value only. Removal of live eggs is difficult and unreliable.

Ordinary combing has very little effect.

Yours sincerely

G. Lockwood