Head Lice in School Children in Uberlandia, Minas Gerais State, Brazil

Abstract

School-aged children have shown to be the group most susceptible to Pediculus capitis infestation, possibly due to their habits and behaviors. The purpose of the study was to verify the prevalence of head pediculosis in preschool children from Uberlândia, MG, and factors associated with infestation. The children's parents or guardians were also evaluated regarding socioeconomic status, knowledge of symptomatology and control of this ectoparasitosis. Data were obtained by direct examination of each child's head and a questionnaire answered by parents/guardians. The overall prevalence rate was 7.5% among the 372 children examined, and 4 to 5-year-old girls with long hair presented significantly higher prevalence rates. Information from the questionnaires indicated that 45% of the children had already been infested at least once and the main symptom mentioned was intense itching on the scalp. Those responsible mostly used natural control measures to control infestations. The results indicated that children under the age of six should also be included in head pediculosis control programs.

Vaccuuming method as a successful strategy in the diagnosis of active infestation by Pediculus humanus capitis

“…The prevalence of overall infestation in girls observed at the present study is similar to the reported ones in other studies from Brazil and other countries 9,17,31 . The differences between sex may be associated to behavioral variations 6 .…”

“…Considering that the empty nit can remain attached to the hair as long as six months after the infestation 4 , the finding of an empty nit could result in a false positive for head lice infestation, mainly in children with long hair 10,19,25 . Considering that, this difference may be more related to hair length than to sex ratio 6,9 .…”

“…Another concern is the embarrassment among parents of infested children, which interfere with the management of this medical condition 29 . There is not a public program directed to the control of head lice in both regions studied, thus the creation of permanent educational programs, associated with the correct diagnosis, may help to reduce the prevalence of active pediculosis in schoolchildren 9,34,35 .…”

“…Most of the epidemiological and clinical studies in Latin America use the visual inspection procedure to diagnose head lice infestation 2,[6][7][8][9] . However, this method has shown low accuracy to detect trophic stages, like nymphs and adult lice, especially in low intensity infestations 4,5 .…”

Evaluation of resistance of human head lice to pyrethroid insecticides: a meta-analysis study

“…Infestation with this ectoparasite is often asymptomatic and not pathogenic for humans, but it causes skin irritation and sometimes leads to skin infection due to skin itching (1,2). But the importance of this pollution is its widespread prevalence, so that in recent decades, most of the countries of the world in North America, South America, Australia, Europe, and Asia have been involved in this pollution, and its prevalence is increasing (3)(4)(5)(6). As a result, controlling and preventing the spread of this Infestation is very important.…”