Tulsa, OK, Aug. 06, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lice Clinics of America–MidSouth, part of the Lice Clinics of America 200 network, reported an increase in lice treatments of 42 percent in their two Oklahoma clinics and a 69 percent increase in their Arkansas clinic from April to May of this year, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Head lice infestations affecting the entire family have been more severe during the pandemic, likely due to the fact that families have isolated at home together.
“We were able to stay open throughout the pandemic, seeing families one at a time in our clinics,” says Jessie Foley, Director of Clinics for the three MidSouth clinics in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Lowell, Arkansas. “Our staff wear masks and all clinics practice thorough cleaning protocols. We also screen clients regarding their health so if they have respiratory distress or a temperature, they can reschedule.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “Head-to-head contact with an already infested person is the most common way to get head lice. Head-to-head contact is common during play at school, at home, and elsewhere, such as sports activities, the playground, slumber parties, and camps.” The CDC estimates 6-12 million infestations occur each year in the U.S. among children 3-11 years of age.
Dr. Krista Lauer, Medical Director of LCA, states, “If you have children who are elementary and middle-school ages, it’s important to take some immediate steps to either prevent your children from being infested or to properly treat and kill the lice before they spread to others in your family and social group.”
Dr. Lauer says, “First, don’t panic, and second, don’t be embarrassed. A head lice infestation has nothing to do with personal hygiene or the cleanliness of your environment. In fact, with recent self-isolating orders, head lice infestations more easily spread to everyone in the household due to close proximity.” She recommends the following to make sure lice aren’t living in your child’s hair:
- Inspect your own head and your child’s, especially if your child has an itchy scalp. Look for eggs, nymphs, and adult lice. One adult louse can lay about a hundred eggs during her life span. That’s a lot of new lice.
- Call the parents of your child’s friends and have them check for head lice, remembering that earlier intervention can help to reduce the infestation level. With shelter-in-place orders being lifted, kids are playing together again, and summer camps are in session.
- If you see lice—or if you are unsure whether you have lice—visit a professional lice treatment center such as Lice Clinics of America for a screening.
- Traditional over-the-counter treatments contain pesticides that are ineffective. Lice have evolved into “super lice” and have developed resistance to those pesticides. Find a treatment that is safe and effective. Lice Clinics of America has several options to choose from.
In terms of lice activity still happening in large numbers amidst a pandemic when most people are staying home and social distancing, “We’ve found that the one individual that had lice spread it to the entire family during the quarantine. Instead of seeing one or two individuals at our clinic, we’re seeing more families,” says Foley. “The level of infestations was still mild to moderate but were spread across multiple individuals.”
Lice Clinics of America is the world’s number-one service brand for treating head lice. The company’s revolutionary heated-air treatment is guaranteed to kill lice, lice eggs, and super lice in a single, one-hour treatment. Lice Clinics of America offers professional lice screenings and a full line of top-rated lice treatment and prevention products including professional solutions for parents with children at home.
For more information visit www.liceclinicsofamerica.com.
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About Lice Clinics of America
With more than 300 clinics worldwide in 30 countries, Lice Clinics of America (www.LiceClinicsOfAmerica.com) is the largest network of professional head lice treatment centers in the world. Its patented heated-air device, AirAllé, has effectively treated more than 675,000 head lice infestations. Lice Clinics of America and AirAllé (www.airalle.com) are brands owned by Larada Sciences™, Inc., which is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.