PHARMACY - common ailments

Head lice:

• Lice may be seen behind the ears and at the nape of the neck
• Lice are black and grip onto the hair shaft. They may be seen by combing wet hair with a fine-tooth comb over a sheet of white paper
• The live eggs, called nits, are white
• Nits attach themselves to the hair and are usually found within 1cm of the scalp
• There may be a rash or scratch marks around the hairline and neck
• The characteristic itch occurs only after several weeks of infestation, when the immune system reacts to the saliva of the lice
• Head lice are spread mainly be close physical contact, for example, they can crawl very quickly between two close heads. They can also spread via shared brushes, hats, etc...
• They have no defence against disease or injury, and if combing or brushing damages their legs they will not survive
• They are not a sign of poor hygiene - head lice prefer clean hair
• Some products kill both head lice and nits; others just the head lice

Tips and advice for customers:

• Use a fine-tooth nit comb to remove dead lice and eggs
• Re-applying the product in seven days will help kill lice that have hatched from eggs that were not killed by the first application
• If one product has been tried, another product should not be used unless the first product was used for two applications 7-10 days apart
• Prophylactic (or 'just in case') use of anti-head lice products is not recommended because head lice could become resistant to treatment
• It is important to follow the products instructions exactly for effective results
• Brush the hair regularly to break the lice legs so they cannot reproduce
• Soak combs and brushes in the shampoo

When to seek further professional advice:

• If there are sores on the scalp. These can be due to a secondary bacterial infection, especially at the nape of the neck
• The patient is tired or run down