Read up on Head lice treatment options at Consumer Reports Health.

Head lice

Key points about treatments

Head lice are basically harmless but they can be irritating. And they can be more than a nuisance if your child is kept out of school with head lice. The good news is that there are treatments that will get rid of them quickly in about 8 in 10 cases.

Most treatments come in shampoos, gels and lotions. They contain chemicals that kill insects (insecticides). If you follow the instructions, they are safe. Sometimes they don't work because the head lice have developed a resistance to the chemicals (this means that the chemicals no longer kill all the head lice). If this happens, you will have to try a different treatment.

Key points about treating head lice

Treat yourself (or a member of your household) for head lice only after you've found a live louse in your hair (or theirs).
Chemical treatments for head lice (insecticides) can work, but head lice are becoming resistant to chemical treatments. So it's hard to say which treatment will work best for you.
A fairly new treatment called dimethicone may also help get rid of head lice. Researchers think that head lice won't become resistant to it, as they do to chemical insecticides.
Use liquids or lotions rather than shampoos. The amount of chemical in shampoos is so small that these are unlikely to work.
Treatments may not always kill head lice eggs. This means you might have to repeat the treatment after seven days to catch newly hatched head lice.
If you use a treatment correctly and it doesn't work, it probably means the head lice are resistant to it. Don't use the same chemical again.
Liquid treatments are made with water, and lotions are made with alcohol. Both work. But it is best not to use alcohol-based treatments on anyone with severe

eczema
Eczema is a very itchy rash. It may be dark and bumpy and release fluid. Scratching makes it worse. You can get eczema anywhere on your body, but it is most common on the wrists, the insides of the elbows and the backs of the knees. If you have asthma or allergies you are more likely to get eczema than someone who doesn't have these conditions.

eczema or

asthma
Asthma is a long-term disease of the lungs. It makes you wheeze, cough and feel short of breath. Asthma attacks are caused by iflammation and narrowing of the airways, which makes it hard for air to pass in and out of the lungs.

asthma.
Combing hair with a louse-detection comb (also known as "bug-busting") may work. But we need more research to know for sure.
We don't know yet whether herbal treatments work.

This information was last updated on Aug 17, 2009

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
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