Head Lice
HEAD LICE is not a medical or public health hazard.
Students with live bugs, or new infestations will be sent home to begin treatment.
Students may be at school if they have nits, and are undergoing treatment.
If your child has head lice at school...
Parent/guardian of student is notified by the Nurse's telephone call.
Parent/guardian is notified that the student must obtain successful head lice treatment before returning to school. It will also be recommended that all members of the household be checked and positive cases be treated at the same time.
Infested student is sent home as soon as possible (in some cases this may not be until the end of the day).
Student is allowed to return to school after successful treatment. Treatment is obtained through an over the counter medication, a prescribed medication from their healthcare provider, or going to a lice treatment technician.
Successful treatment kills crawling lice. Nits will still be present. All nits within ¼ inch of the scalp should be manually removed. Students may have nits upon return to school as long as continued steps are made to remove them.
Only other students showing symptoms of an infestation will be checked for head lice. Symptoms include:Tickling feeling of something moving in hair, Itchy scalp caused by allergic reaction to louse bites, Irritability and difficulty sleeping (head lice are most active in the dark), Sores on the head caused by scratching, or actual visualization of parasites.
Head lice basic facts...
Head lice are little insects that live on people's heads, eyebrows, and eyelashes.
They lay eggs (nits) attached to the hair shaft, near the skin. Eggs are small, and may look white, yellow, or the same color as the hair.
Female lice lay about 6 eggs per day.
Eggs take 8-9 days to hatch.
Adult bugs move around on the skin, biting and feeding on blood. Ew!
Adults can live on the scalp for up to 30 days, but typically die after 1-2 days if they lose access to blood.
Head lice will die in about 5 minutes when exposed to high temperatures (like going in the dryer).
How do kids get head lice?
Lice can only walk - they do not jump or fly. So, to get head lice, we have to have direct contact with live bugs or eggs.
Kids often get head lice from close friends or relatives in the following situations:
sharing brushes, combs, hats, coats,
sharing pillows, beds, sofas, sleeping bags,
touching their heads together (hugging , taking group pictures, sleeping together).
Showering and washing hair does not prevent or treat head lice. They like clean hair and dirty hair equally!
How can I tell if my child has lice?
Usually, head lice is discovered because the child is scratching their head a lot.
Sometimes, we also see a small bug crawling on the head or clothing.
How to check a head for lice:
Section the hair and look for live bugs and eggs (nits). The adult bugs avoid light, so they may crawl away before you see them.
Look for eggs (nits) behind the ears and at the neck - lice like dark places.
Nits will look like little specs attached to the hair shaft.
Many other things might look like nits - flakey scalp, dandruff, dried hari spray, or dirt. Nits are firmly attached to the hair and do not come off by brushing, combing with a regular comb, washing with regular shampoo, or shaking the head.
Unhatched nits will be about 1/4" from the scalp. Nits farther away from the scalp have probably already hatched.
How do I treat head lice?
Lice can be really hard to treat. The adults keep laying eggs, and those tiny eggs wait 8-9 days to hatch. So, if your treatment leaves even a few eggs behind, the cycle will start all over again when they hatch.
Please visit the CDC webpage for complete instructions on treating head lice: https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/treatment.html
There are several local services who will come into the home and treat your family for head lice. Fees vary.
The basic steps are:
Day 1
Check every household member for signs of infestation;
Treat all infested people with lice treatment (can be shampoo, gel, mousse, or prescription medication);
Section the hair and use a lice comb to comb out all of the nits.
Gather clothing, bedding, stuffed animals that have been used inthe past 2 days: wash and dry them or seal them in a plastic bag for 2 weeks.
Vaccum furniture, carpets, matresses - any place where the infested person has laid their head in the past 2 days.
Day 1-2
Re-check infested people after 8-12 hours to make sure the treatment worked.
Day 2-15
Section and comb hair every day for the next two weeks to catch any bugs or nits.
HEAD LICE 101 INFORMATION FOR PARENTS.pdfHead Lice 101 Spanish.pdf