My 6 year old daughter went through a bout of daycare-acquired head lice
recently and, given the relative absence of information regarding treatment
provided by the centre and public health unit, I undertook a rather extensive
search for literature and resources. What I eventually found was that an
effective, non-pharmacologic, and non-toxic treatment is olive oil. This is
often recommended for infants because it does not carry the risk of
neurotoxicity like lindane does or the general risk of toxicity like malathion
(which, by the way, is a pesticide my mother-in-law sprays on her trees to
kill insects!). Pyrethrins are often recommended because they have the lowest
absorption but they are also insecticides so they carry some risk. Another
alternative treatment, which worked very well for us, was to use eight drops
of tee tree oil in some shampoo, lather, leave on for 20 minutes at most,
rinse, and then pick ALL of the nits out by hand. We initially tried a
pyrethrin and it did nothing! Little live lice (which are very difficult to
see because they move fast and hide when the hair is separated) were still
laying eggs after a few days. One treatment with the tee tree oil and we
picked out some dead lice and there were no new nits. As for the olive oil
treatment, it is used to essentially drown the lice so it is applied liberally
and then left on the head under a covering of some kind (i.e., one of the
small baby caps would work well) overnight or for a period of around 8 hours
or so. The oil is then shampooed out and the nits are picked out. BTW, this
treatment also works well for adults!
Finally, a few key things to remember when dealing with lice: (1) ALWAYS pick
out the nits using a fine metal lice comb (or a fine flea comb for cats - the
tines are usually rounded and do not scratch the head) and then by hand, (2)
use a really good light and get comfy because picking nits takes a LONG time,
(3) check the head for nits daily for about 2 weeks until you are sure that
there are no new nits and pick out any new nits that are seen, (4) wash all
items of clothing, bedding, etc. that may have come into contact with the
infested person's head in the warmest water possible and then dry in a hot
dryer (it is the heat of the dryer that kills the lice and nits) or,
alternately, place the items in a plastic bag and pop into the freezer for a
couple of weeks, (5) freeze or boil all hair care items, and (6) vacuum
annything that can't be washed (i.e., the couch). Oh, and always wash your
hands and under your nails when dealing with lice, especially when checking
more than one head, to prevent transmission and make sure to check the whole
family until you are sure that the infestation has been beat!
Dru

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