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Pharmacy Care provides information about self-care, that is how to treat minor medical conditions with products available at the pharmacy. Find out how your pharmacist can help you to manage minor conditions yourself.
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Head lice are insects that live in your hair. They are a brownish grey colour, measure just a few millimetres long and have six legs with claws to hold onto hairs. Head lice feed on blood from your scalp and are often most noticeable behind the ears and at the nape of the neck.
Lice cannot fly or jump, but they can ‘trapeze’ or crawl from person to person when there is close contact between heads (and possibly through sharing hairbrushes or combs).
Female lice lay eggs called nits, which appear as tiny white specks on hairs, close to the scalp. The eggs hatch after seven to 10 days. The empty egg cases can also be seen in the hair and are found slightly further away from the scalp. It is important to check behind the ears and at the nape of the neck when looking for a lice infestation.
Head lice are most common in children (who are more likely to share hats, brushes and combs and have long hair) but they can spread to adults.
Often there are no obvious signs of infestation. There may be blood spots, a rash or scratch marks around the hairline and neck from itching. Sometimes there is no itch at all. These symptoms appear only after several weeks of infestation, when the body develops an allergic reaction to the saliva of the lice.
Head lice are not a sign of dirty hair or poor hygiene. They are just as likely to be found in clean hair.
See Your Pharmacist or Medical Professional
if you have broken skin or sores on your scalp
if you are unsure of the problem (skin conditions such as dandruff and psoriasis can be confused with head lice)
if the person with head lice is a child under six months old
if you are pregnant, breastfeeding or have eczema or asthma
if you still have head lice after treatment; check you have repeated the treatment according to the product directions
Treatment Tips
some products need reapplying to kill further lice that hatch from nits missed by the first treatment. See individual products for directions
check for and treat all affected family members at the same time
avoid getting the products in your eye
some products may affect permed, coloured or bleached hair
wash all hairbrushes and combs
head lice do not survive long once away from the body
washing clothing, bedding and towels is often recommended as part of treatment
use a fine-tooth nit comb to remove dead lice and nits
tell your child’s school or preschool
Advice for preventing head lice
avoid sharing hairbrushes, combs and hats
avoid touching heads together
keep long hair tied back or cut hair shorter
check your child’s scalp and hair each week
preventative use of head lice products is not recommended because it can make head lice resistant to treatment
check for head lice by appling hair conditioner to dry hair and using a fine-tooth comb to look for lice or eggs. Repeat this combing, wiping the conditioner onto tissue to check for infestation
Treatment Options
Anti-lice (anti-parasite) products
[GENERAL SALE]
e.g. maldison (KP 24 lotion and shampoo)
kills head lice and nits
apply the lotion and shampoo as directed: use a fine-tooth comb afterwards to remove dead lice
don’t use a hair dryer after applying the lotion due to alcohol content; this should also be avoided in asthmatics
avoid contact with eyes, mouth and the inside of the nose
re-treat after 7 to 10 days
e.g. permethrin (Pyrifoam Lice Breaker, Quellada Head Lice Treatment)
treatment requires two applications one week apart
apply Pyrifoam to dry hair and leave on for at least 20 minutes. Comb and then wash out with a mild shampoo
apply Quellada to damp, dry hair, leave on for ten minutes, wash out then comb through
avoid contact with eyes, mouth and inside the nose
Combination products
[GENERAL SALE] e.g. permethrin + piperonyl butoxide (Banlice Mousse, Paralice)
repeat treatment after 7 to 10 days to kill any new lice
avoid contact with eyes, mouth and the inside of the nose
apply the mousse to dry hair, leave for ten minutes, wash with shampoo and remove lice with a fine-tooth comb
apply the spray to the whole scalp, leave for 30 minutes then rinse with warm water. Use a fine-tooth comb to remove lice
Products containing natural ingredients
[GENERAL SALE] e.g. herbs and/or essential oils (Moov Head Lice range, Wild Child Quit Nits Advance)
Moov contains a mixture of essential oils, including eucalyptus oil, which kills head lice and eggs
Moov should be applied as directed and the treatment repeated after 7 and 14 days
Wild Child Quit Nits Advance contains quassia wood, which is a source of quassin, a natural insecticide
Wild Child can help to eliminate head lice in one application: massage the cream into the scalp and shampoo off after two hours
Combs
[GENERAL SALE] e.g. Lice Blaster Comb, Moov Head Lice Combing Conditioner With Comb
use to remove dead lice and nits after treatment
use for wet combing to remove live lice and eggs
use with a conditioner to aid combing
More Information
Availability of medicines
GENERAL SALE available through pharmacies and possibly other retail outlets.
PHARMACY ONLY available for sale through pharmacies only.
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