Found More Lice - Now What?

[Ariana]

I got a call from DCM this morning telling me they found live lice on DCG's head. She has insisted to me that the kid has been "nit free" for the past 2 days. I made her stay home yesterday as a precaution and now I'm really glad I did!!

They gave her a treatment on Sunday so what is the usual protocol after they find actual lice? Treat again in 7 days? It would seem to me that she was not nit free as they indicated to me so now I am VERY paranoid about letting her back.

What would be an acceptable way to let DCM know she cannot come back until completely free of all nits and lice? What kind of timeline would you suggest? Nit free/lice free for 10 days or something like that? I don't feel I can trust the mom idea of "nit free" right now and want to make this a serious issue for her. She's my neighbour so I saw her go to work 15 minutes after she called me and has not taken 1 day off since this whole thing started. The DCG is at home with the dad (who works from home) so I don't feel that they're taking this seriously. I'm only surmising this of course but if it were my child I'd be checking her every couple of hours around the clock!!

[LittleD]

In our town we have a Lice Squad. They do lice/nit removal ($20-30). If you have something like that, maybe you can tell her that the kids have to be inspected by them before returning? Just a thought!

Or you can check them yourself when they get to your place and if they have it send them away. 10 days seem a little extreme, especially if they just aren't doing it right. Have they been educated in lice/nit removal and care of the home?

[MarinaVanessa]

You know more than likely she could have been nit free but they might have missed washing her bedding and pillows or clothing or something. I would recommend that they do another treatment according to what the box says and comb her hair through with the little comb again.

You can choose to have her back whenever you feel ok with it but I don't think that keeping her out for another week is necessary unless she has live nits/lice still. If they do another treatment today and tell you that she's nit/lice free you can check DCG's head at drop off before she comes in your door. YOU DO THE CHECK!

If you don't see anything then she can come in. Lice is pretty obvous to spot, just look for little black bugs that sort of look like tiny pincher-bugs. The nits are harder to spot especially if DCG has blond or light hair. Nits are little tiny eggs that are usually attached close to the root of the hair. You may want to require that DCM bring the lice comb with her so that you can run it through DCGs head at pick up and during the day just to be sure.

Lice


Nits

[Meyou]

The treatment kills the live lice and forces the nits (eggs) to hatch prematurely and then is suppose to kill them as they hatch. BUT one live louse can reinfest in less than a week so you have to nitpick daily for at least a week IMO to be sure you got them all. Nitpicking is painfully tedious and takes forever if you do it right. You have to comb and check each hair for nits daily.

You also need to wash all bedding, towels and carseats, vacuum mattresses, baseboards and furniture and bag all fabric things (like stuffies) that can't be washed for 2 weeks in airtight garbage bags.

Personally, I would get DCG to stay home for 2-3 days after the last nit or louse is seen and then I would check her head myself before I would let her past the front door.

ETA: there are also drug resistant strains of lice out there. If DCG keeps getting reinfested she may have one of those. In that case you need to do even more nitpicking and use a natural cure which vary from a vinegar solution to unglue the nits to tea tree oil and other oils on the head to smother the live lice.

[Heidi]

The treatment kills the live lice and forces the nits (eggs) to hatch prematurely and then is suppose to kill them as they hatch. BUT one live louse can reinfest in less than a week so you have to nitpick daily for at least a week IMO to be sure you got them all. Nitpicking is painfully tedious and takes forever if you do it right. You have to comb and check each hair for nits daily.

You also need to wash all bedding, towels and carseats, vacuum mattresses, baseboards and furniture and bag all fabric things (like stuffies) that can't be washed for 2 weeks in airtight garbage bags.

Personally, I would get DCG to stay home for 2-3 days after the last nit or louse is seen and then I would check her head myself before I would let her past the front door.

ETA: there are also drug resistant strains of lice out there. If DCG keeps getting reinfested she may have one of those. In that case you need to do even more nitpicking and use a natural cure which vary from a vinegar solution to unglue the nits to tea tree oil and other oils on the head to smother the live lice.

this and while she'g gone...you have to wash all (not just hers, all the kids) bedding, towels etc...vacuum....etc...bag up all stuffed animals.

[familyschoolcare]

Tell the mom that if she realy did treat the child and washed all the bedding and other stuff. Then she needs to call the doctor and as them what to do.

When we had that happen Kaiser told us to use the brand name product for killing the lice because it is stronger and to leave it on the hair overnight for

atleast 12 hours, not to use any chemicials on the hair and then repeat the process in 10 - 14 days.

[Ariana]

Thanks everyone. So far it is just this little girl infected and I've washed all bedding and vacuumed thoroughly. She is blonde so they likely didn't catch a nit.

I found the # for the Lice Squad in my area and I just might hire them to come and check her out on her first day back...what do you think?

I like the advice of waiting 2-3 days after the last nit or lice had been seen. I know it's going to be tough on mom but I have another family to worry about not to mention my own home and head! My other DCF just might term over this. The DCG is always sick, her sister is always sick and now this!! I have to be very strict about this one IMO.

I just feel that they're not doing a thorough job of cleaning. The mom is gone too much to do anything IMO. Last night we saw them out at dinner as we were eating at the same resto....

[sharlan]

My borrowed granddaughter had a bad case a couple of years ago. Her mom tried everything and nothing worked. I even bought one of those special electronic combs that zaps the bugs.

I believe what finally worked was coating her hair in olive oil, wrapping it in an old towel with a shower cap, and leaving it in overnight.

[e.j.]

I had a dcg who was out almost 4 weeks with lice. Each time the father would bring her back telling me she was all set, I'd check her hair and find more bugs/eggs. It was beyond frustrating for them. After a couple of treatments with shampoo made specifically to get rid of lice, they tried coating her hair with mayo and that finally worked. After bringing her back to me so many times before the bugs were actually gone, I did have him get her hair checked by her dr. and bring in a note stating they were gone before she could return.

My own dd got lice when she was in elementary school. We had the same problem with the shampoo not killing them all, needed a couple of treatments. Even after nighty comb-throughs and constant checking, it took close to 3 weeks to finally get rid of them all. Not fun!

[Ariana]

I got a call from the mom telling me that they checked her hair tonight and found a nit and she was bringing dcg tomorrow morning. I don't understand how she can be so nonchalant about this whole thing! Anyway I told her she couldn't come back until the second treatment and then clear for 2 days after the second treatment. I have to be firm on this....now I'm annoyed!!

Maybe I'll suggest the mayo and olive oil...

[momofboys]

I got a call from the mom telling me that they checked her hair tonight and found a nit and she was bringing dcg tomorrow morning. I don't understand how she can be so nonchalant about this whole thing! Anyway I told her she couldn't come back until the second treatment and then clear for 2 days after the second treatment. I have to be firm on this....now I'm annoyed!!

Maybe I'll suggest the mayo and olive oil...

Stand your ground. I am annoyed/ticked for you. I can't believe she told you she found a nit & in the same breathe said she would be bringing her:confused::confused: I'd definitely wait until she is re-treated. We were always told by our dr when our kids got it that we had to wait 7 or 10 days between treatments though b/c the shampoo is so potent/full of chemicals & apparently not safe to use too close together. But that is not your problem. Good luck!

[smb757]

There was a lice outbreak at my son's preschool a while back. They did head checks on every single child (and staff) who came in the building and turned away anyone with lice or nits. They also bagged up everyone's stuff each day (backpacks and coats) so they didn't touch. And they obviously bagged up pillows and stuffed animals in the affected rooms.

[Ariana]

Stand your ground. I am annoyed/ticked for you. I can't believe she told you she found a nit & in the same breathe said she would be bringing her:confused::confused: I'd definitely wait until she is re-treated. We were always told by our dr when our kids got it that we had to wait 7 or 10 days between treatments though b/c the shampoo is so potent/full of chemicals & apparently not safe to use too close together. But that is not your problem. Good luck!

I definately stood my ground! I told her my policy and she was pretty mad. I told her that me having to shut down because of an outbreak wouldn't be helping anyone. She told me she understood. ugh. Seriously some people have no idea how their actions impact others.

She stayed home from work today THANKFULLY!!! Maybe she's finally taking it seriously :confused:

[Live and Learn]

My pediatrician said that it isn't the treatments of rid, or olive oil or mayo, or the lice zapping combs that eliminates lice. It is good old fashioned DAILY combing and combing and combing with a lice comb until the lice and their nits are gone.

[Ariana]

My pediatrician said that it isn't the treatments of rid, or olive oil or mayo, or the lice zapping combs that eliminates lice. It is good old fashioned DAILY combing and combing and combing with a lice comb until the lice and their nits are gone.

Completely agree!! I am so worried about my DD getting this because there is no way I'm going to douse her head in an insecticide (unless I have no choice). It will be old fashioned nit picking for me. Just thinking about it gives me the hebejebees::