Duration of lice quarantine in kindergarten

Lice in kindergartens

Parents should clearly understand that head lice is a common disease. It does not carry any intimate factors. Infection of a child with head lice in a kindergarten group is quite common. This is due to the large concentration of people in a confined space. Main methods of infection:

• Contact: lice are transmitted through close interaction from child to child during games and activities.

• When exchanging personal items : children love to exchange clothing items, including hats; in addition, the use of shared hygiene products, such as combs and towels, can lead to the transfer of lice and nits.
• Shared bed : Contact with other people's bedding during quiet times can also lead to parasite infection.

Pediculosis in children is usually a widespread disease. If one child is infected, there is a high probability that almost the entire group will become infected.

It is worth understanding that there is practically no fault of kindergarten employees in infecting a child with lice. Educators may not notice a small bug on the head of one child whose parents did not look after him, and after a week the whole group will go into quarantine. It is impossible to completely protect a child from lice infection. Check your child's hair regularly to prevent the spread of parasites at an early stage.

Causes of infection

Even one child infected with lice poses a serious danger to the entire kindergarten group. There are several causes of lice. The main ways lice are transmitted are:

• direct contact - hugs, playing together or touching the head;
• the exchange of clothes, hats, as well as hair care items (combs, hairpins, hoops or elastic bands) contributes to the transfer of lice and their eggs to the child’s clean head;
• shared bed – quite often during quiet times, children can toss and turn, lying on someone else’s bed.

What must a kindergarten do to prevent head lice?

The spread of head lice in preschool institutions is due to the fact that a child under 7 years of age has not yet mastered the complex of independent hygiene. A large gathering of small children leads to lightning-fast infection.

In kindergartens of all types, preventive measures must be carried out. The regulations establish the following procedure:

• Conducting scheduled conversations and briefings with parents as part of the parent meeting. On the agenda are the main methods of prevention and ways to combat the disease.
• Examination of a newly arrived child by a regular health worker. If parasites are found, the child is not allowed into the institution. After treatment, the child’s parents must provide an appropriate certificate from the clinic indicating complete recovery.
• Routine examination of children is carried out at least once a month . Data from the examination of pupils is recorded in a special journal. Patients are sent for treatment.

Preventive actions by educators, health workers and parents will help minimize the risk of an epidemic.

What parents need to know

Many parents have encountered lice in their children. In most cases, the fault was the contact that the child maintained in the garden with his peers. Due to their age, children do not yet understand that it is unsafe to exchange a cap or a Panama hat, a hairpin or a comb.

Getting rid of lice is very difficult, so the best measure is to prevent the disease. It is for these purposes that children's institutions hold consultations for parents, where they can get answers to all their questions. The plan for carrying out preventive measures at home includes:

• Daily hair care - comb it thoroughly using a thin toothed comb. Regular hair examination will help to detect parasites in a timely manner and prevent the proliferation of lice.
• Boys must wear short hair in kindergarten. It is better for girls to wear long hair in a braid.
• Hats, clothes, bedding and toys should be washed regularly.
• Carpets and upholstery should be cleaned twice a week.

To prevent your child from becoming infected with head lice in kindergarten, you must follow simple rules:

• place the child’s personal belongings in a designated locker;
• try to explain to the child that playing on a shared carpet is unsafe;
• teach your child to cover the pillow with a home towel during quiet time, which needs to be washed regularly;
• for preventive purposes, you should periodically treat the child’s hair with a prophylactic agent;
• Daily thorough checking of the hair for the presence of lice can prevent the spread of the disease.

Well, first things first. If there is lice in the garden, then this is an ass for the entire medical service and the manager, this is an indicator that the doctors are not working, or are working poorly. The question arises - are you sure that you caught lice in the garden? If there is at least one child there who still has head lice, then yes. But if I were the manager, I would try to hide it. What you do depends on the result you want to achieve. If you, as a mother, are full of anger and want to punish all the bastards, then, firstly, write a statement addressed to the manager, informing him of the fact of the disease and asking that all measures be taken to eliminate such cases, etc. Ask in the statement that the manager He responded to you indicating what measures were taken (for this you MUST indicate your last name, middle name and full address where to send the answer in your application). Be sure to register this piece of paper and keep a copy with the registration number, otherwise it will be useless and will definitely be lost. Secondly, the kindergarten must have a supervisory body in terms of sanitation and hygiene - find out in the kindergarten what kind of organization it is - and there is also a paper indicating your name and address, what happened in the kindergarten, ask them to conduct an investigation, therefore this happened (they are obliged to do this) with a request to take control of the situation and inform you about what they (this organization) have done. According to the Federal Law “On the procedure for considering appeals and applications from citizens..”, any official is obliged to write a response to your appeal within 30 days. Well, thirdly, the most important thing is how to treat pediculosis (if you have not done so already). Literally for about 15 years, everyone was getting their hair cut, poisoning them with Dikhdofos, etc. Now treating head lice is not a problem. Any average pharmacy sells special shampoos for the treatment of head lice. I just need to wash my hair with this shampoo and leave the foam on my head for 15-20 minutes (read the instructions). IMPORTANT: But the most important thing for you is not the treatment of head lice, but the prevention of it for your entire family. 1. I would DEFINITELY wash the heads of all family members with this shampoo as a preventive measure - you never know if some flea crawled onto someone’s head. 2. Mandatory washing and changing of bed and underwear at a temperature of at least 90 degrees. All combs, hairpins, and hats of the child are also treated in boiling water. 3. and within 2 weeks you need to regularly examine the child’s head in order to assess the success of your efforts. And further. In fact, for kindergartens this is a big hemorrhoid - pediculosis. They should hold a bunch of events. And without the help of the San-Epid organization, they may not be able to do this, so be sure to contact them there. And I would, if possible, not take my child to kindergarten during the rush - let them handle everything calmly. I am a doctor, and every summer I fight lice in a children’s health camp - in three years I have not yet won the war against them, not everything is as simple as it may seem...

Causes of lice in children

There are many opinions about the nature of lice on the human hair and body. These include chronic diseases, poor hygiene and even stress. However, the main and almost the only reason is direct infection . Lice can only be transmitted from someone, but in no case appear out of nowhere on their own; lice do not appear from stress, nerves or hepatitis.

Pediculosis can be contracted through any contact with an infected person, or through an item with which he has recently been in contact.

There is an opinion that lice, like fleas, can jump and move from person to person, jumping on heads. This is wrong. Infection can occur through contact. Cases of infection often occur in cinemas, fitting rooms or on public transport.

Kindergarten and other institutions are the most favorable places. With a large gathering of children, the risk increases significantly.

No matter how much you care for your baby, you cannot deprive him of contact with other children. Therefore, check your child’s hair regularly after playing with friends, especially if there has been contact with children from disadvantaged families. It is much easier to treat pediculosis at an early stage than in its advanced form.

It is worth remembering that lice is not a disease of a dirty head. Adult parasites feel great on clean skin.

Remedy for lice - spray, shampoo

To treat head lice, it is necessary to take an integrated approach. It is important to use only those drugs and remedies that are approved by your family doctor, otherwise the treatment may turn out disastrously.

Spray is the best solution

Most over-the-counter products are based on pyrethrins, chemicals extracted from chrysanthemums that are toxic to lice. Before using these products, wash your child's hair with shampoo without conditioner.

Rinsing your hair with white wine vinegar before washing it can help dissolve the glue that attaches nits to your hair. Follow the instructions on the package for how long to leave the head lice treatment for children in your hair, then rinse your hair over a sink of warm water.

Over-the-counter sprays include:

1. Permethrin (Nix) is a synthetic version of pyrethrin. Side effects may include redness and itching.
2. Pyrethrin with additives (Rid, A200) - includes chemical compounds that increase its toxicity. Side effects are redness and itching. Pyrethrins should not be used if the child is allergic to chrysanthemums or ragweed.

In some geographic areas, lice have developed resistance to the above-mentioned drugs. Also, treatment with such drugs may be ineffective if used incorrectly, for example, if the drugs are not reapplied during treatment.

The most effective shampoo

How to treat pediculosis in children? If over-the-counter medications don't help you, your doctor may prescribe shampoos based on the following:

1. Benzyl alcohol (Ulesfia). It is not toxic to lice, but kills them by depriving them of oxygen. Side effects include redness and itching in the scalp area. The use of benzyl alcohol to disinfect medical instruments has been shown to cause seizures and other serious consequences in newborns. Therefore, treatment of lice with benzyl alcohol is not permitted for children under 6 months of age.
2. Malathion (Ovide). Approved for children over 6 years old. Head lice shampoo for children with medications is applied to the hair, after which it is left to dry for 8-12 hours. The medication contains alcohol, so you should avoid using a hairdryer or keeping your child near an open flame.
3. Lindan. This medicated shampoo has a risk of serious side effects, including seizures, and is used only when other remedies are ineffective. The American Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend its use in children - it is clearly not the best remedy. The Food and Drug Administration warns that it should not be used by anyone who weighs less than 50 kg, is pregnant or breastfeeding, has a history of seizures, or has HIV infection.

www.mayoclinic.org

Symptoms of lice

Pediculosis is quite easy to identify. Symptoms are pronounced:

• severe itching of the skin in the hairline area;
• the appearance of characteristic spots from insect bites, often ulcers (children scratch the bite site);
• the presence of adult parasites ;
• on the hair, mainly at the roots at a distance of 1 cm from the skin, there are oval grains - nits (eggs);
• Scaly may appear (behind the ears, on the back of the head).

Symptoms appear within a day after an adult gets on a child’s hair. Nits usually appear within a couple of days. The parasite is capable of laying several dozen eggs per day. The incubation period for nits is about two weeks, depending on the temperature.

If symptoms occur, it is necessary to pick up the child from kindergarten as soon as possible, buy a product and carry out treatment, as well as disinfect personal belongings.

Where and how can you “catch” a head louse?

She does not fly or jump, but she moves quite quickly (she covers a distance of about 25 cm in a minute). Therefore, it can quickly climb from one owner to another. Especially with severe overcrowding of children, which occurs in schools, kindergartens and holiday camps, on children's playgrounds and other places.

A healthy child becomes infected from a sick child:

* with direct contact of the heads of two children;

* through things when children borrow them from each other: hats, scarves, sweaters, combs and hair decorations, outerwear and others;

* there is a possibility of infection in a common locker room or even public transport (usually through headrests);

* sleeping in the same bed with a child infested with lice.

And the point here is not at all that the rules of personal hygiene are not observed. On the contrary, the louse especially “loves” clean and well-groomed children. Since in this case the scalp is clean, it is therefore easier to pierce it and get food without much effort, and it is much easier to hold on to clean hair.

By the way, it is impossible to become infected with nits , because they do not move at all.

Prevention and treatment

Removing lice is a serious problem, especially if the case is advanced. This is due to the fact that almost all products are designed to destroy adult parasites, and only a few kill nits (the so-called larvae attached to hairs in a cocoon). Medicines for head lice are considered the most effective, in contrast to traditional methods.

By the way, the easiest and cheapest way to cure lice is to shave the baby’s head bald. It’s not a problem for a boy to walk around like this for a couple of weeks. At the same time, it is important for parents not to become infected themselves when cutting their child’s hair.

Complex treatment is the only correct way to get rid of lice and nits. In addition to special shampoos and lice combs, it is necessary to purchase products for washing and disinfecting the child’s personal belongings and hygiene items. The most popular are:

• Hygia is a pediculicidal shampoo. There are contraindications - age under 2 years.
• Pedilin is a universal remedy. Available in the form of gel, shampoo and emulsion. Can be used to treat childhood lice.
• Nittifor is a gel used for the prevention and extermination of parasites.
• Para Plus Spray is a preventive preparation for treating bed and underwear.

In addition to medications, traditional methods are often used, including treating the hair and scalp with vinegar or hydrogen peroxide.

Processing is carried out in several stages. This is done to minimize the reappearance of nit insects. It is recommended to comb out the eggs daily using a fine-toothed comb (most often it is sold complete with shampoo). The main condition for successful treatment is the detection and combing out of all larvae.

If even a few larvae remain on the hair, they can revive the entire colony of parasites in a matter of days. Many drugs are not able to kill lice eggs, so thorough combing is a must.

Bed linen and clothes are washed using a pediculocidal drug or boiled. Heat treatment with iron is possible. There is an opinion that it is enough to remove things that the child has come into contact with for several days. The fact is that lice outside the human body can live a little more than a day, and larvae much longer.

What does the problem look like - symptoms and signs

You may not even suspect the presence of lice.

However, the most common manifestations include:

1. Itching. Scratching of the scalp, neck and ears are the most common signs. It is an allergic reaction to the saliva of lice. During initial infection, itching may not occur for up to six weeks.
2. Lice on the scalp. Lice can be detected, but this is difficult because they are small, avoid bright light and move quickly.
3. Lice eggs on the hair shaft. Eggs with nits are difficult to detect because they are extremely small. They are easiest to see behind the ears and along the hairline on the neck. Empty eggs are easier to spot because they are lighter in color and further away from the scalp. However, the presence of nits does not always indicate the presence of an active infection.

Contact your doctor before you begin treatment if you suspect you or your child has head lice. Research has shown that many children were treated for head lice with a variety of treatments when they did not have an active infection.

Not everyone knows what lice looks like, so the following are often mistaken for lice eggs:

• dead or empty eggs from previous infections;
• dandruff;
• residues and pieces of hair;
• fragments of dead tissue on the hair shaft;
• exfoliated skin, dirt and other debris;
• other small insects.

www.mayoclinic.org

Duration of quarantine

If a child is found to have lice at home, parents should immediately notify the preschool about the incident and stay home. If lice were discovered by kindergarten staff, then the teacher is obliged to notify parents about this and completely isolate the child from other students in the group, while trying not to scare him or ruin his mood.

After this, the health worker conducts an unscheduled examination of all students in the group and disinfects the premises. From this moment on, quarantine is declared. There is a regulated procedure in this case:

1. The teacher is obliged to inform parents about the fact of detection of lice, maintaining confidentiality (the name of the infected child is not made public).
2. The management of the preschool educational institution notifies the Central State Social Security Service at the place of registration of the child. If there are several cases in the group, then the information is sent to the assigned clinic with a statement about the outbreak of lice.
3. Parents are briefed.
4. The institution is quarantined for a period of 30 days .

During quarantine, disinfection measures are carried out in preschool educational institutions, including daily inspection of pupils and staff for problems. A sick child can visit the institution only upon presentation of a certificate of admission from the clinic or SES.

We destroy lice: don’t panic!

Of course, you must first visit a doctor, but in fact, the number of people dealing with this problem is low. Many people immediately run to the pharmacy, because modern pharmacology is replete with drugs to combat lice.

Moreover, each manufacturer praises its product, publishing information that it is safe and promising to get rid of “uninvited guests” in one use. Is this so? After all, we are talking about the health of the baby. Let's figure it out.

Lice control products

For external use, two groups of drugs are used.

1. Insecticides - chemical compounds

• Permitin preparations: Medifox, Hygia, Nyx, Nittifor
• Phenothrin preparations: Aniti-bit, Veda
• Malathion preparations: Pedilin, Para-plus

They are produced in the form of shampoos, soaps, aerosols, emulsions, gels, creams.

How do they work?

They paralyze the nervous system of lice, so they die. After all, all processes in their body stop: breathing, movement, cardiac activity, and so on. The instructions state that these drugs are practically safe. However, in reality this is not always the case. Since they often cause allergic reactions, dry the scalp, increase hair fragility, and lead to the formation of dandruff.

In addition, recently, lice are increasingly developing resistance to these drugs.

2. Preparations based on mineral oils - dimethicones. They are safer because they rarely cause allergic reactions. An additional advantage is that they do not irritate the scalp and lice do not develop an addiction to them.

This group includes Paranit, Pediculen Ultra, Nyuda and ROSH TOV Double Impact.

The drugs are available in the form of an aerosol, shampoo, and lotion. Some of them are equipped with a special fine-tooth comb and a magnifying glass.

How do they work?

Oils clog the respiratory corpuscles of lice, larvae and nits, which means they actually suffocate. In addition, under the influence of drugs, lice's water balance is disrupted and dehydration occurs.

However, no matter what product you choose - based on a chemical substance or natural oils - remember that they are not recommended for use by children under three years of age, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. In these cases, it is still better to consult a doctor.

Another important point: these drugs will not get rid of lice just in one go , since, alas, they do not completely destroy nits, because the eggs have a rather thick shell. But these preparations still dissolve the glue that attaches the nits, and after treatment they are easier to comb out.

Therefore, you will have to treat your head again after 7-10 days (remember the development cycle of lice). This approach gets rid of lice in 99.9% of cases, and three-time treatment at regular intervals completely cures them.

The exception is Paranit® Sensitive. Manufacturers claim that it completely destroys nits and lice within 8 hours (that’s how long the treatment lasts).

How to process?

It's not that complicated. The main thing is to strictly adhere to the instructions of the drug: how to apply, cover your hair or not.

There is no need to overexpose it. Firstly, there is no point (living individuals will die within the time specified in the instructions, and the product will not have much effect on nits), and secondly, it can cause harm.

However, some general rules still exist:

* Before use, make sure that the child is not allergic to the drug you have chosen. Therefore, apply a little product to the skin of the inner surface of the forearm and leave it for 20 minutes. If after this time there is no itching or redness on the skin, then the product can be used.

*Before treatment, be sure to cover your face and cover your baby's shoulders with a towel so that the product does not accidentally get on the skin or eyes. And only then apply it.

* After the allotted time has passed, wash off the drug with shampoo, but in such a way that water does not get on other parts of the body or in the eyes.

* Use a special fine-tooth comb to remove nits and dead lice from damp hair. After combing each strand from the end to the ends of the hair, do not forget to thoroughly clean the comb with a napkin or rinse it under running water.

* Wash and iron clothes, underwear, bedding with an iron and steamer. After all, lice die at high temperatures.

* For items that cannot be washed, arrange a two-day “quarantine”. Because lice do not live long without food.

What to do if your child is allergic?

In this case, all anti-pediculosis drugs are not recommended. There is only one way out - combing out:

* Wash your child's hair with regular shampoo, then lightly towel dry and apply liberally of hair conditioner. At the same time, lice move less actively.

* Next, use a fine-toothed comb to comb out insects and their eggs, starting from the roots of the hair to the very ends. After each combing, wipe the comb with a napkin or rinse under running water.

This procedure must be carried out at least four times within two weeks. Thus, the development cycle of lice will be disrupted.

However, remember that this method is ineffective, so relapse is possible.

“The SES and the director must treat the entire school from the attic to the basement with chemicals! Manually!"

SES no longer exists. There is a successor to this organization - Rospotrebnadzor, which ensures that schools carry out “anti-pediculosis measures.” But this does not mean that the building must be dismantled brick by brick. Here is what is said on this topic in the decree of the chief sanitary doctor of the Russian Federation dated 06/07/2017 (in Appendix No. 2): “In the outbreak of head lice, treatment of furniture, walls, floors, and clothing is not required. Mats in school gyms must be treated.”

And only if body lice, and not head lice, were found (they often live on homeless people, and are very rarely brought into schools), serious sanitation is required. The above resolution says: “When body lice are detected, anti-pediculosis measures are carried out in the outbreak, as well as in places where people and their clothes are examined, premises (floor, chairs, couches, door handles and other objects) with pediculicidal agents.