DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE ARMED FORCES PEST MANAGEMENT BOARD FOREST GLEN SECTION, WRAMC WASHINGTON, D.C. 20307-5001

 September 17, 1992

Ms. Deborah Altschuler, President
National Pediculosis Association
P.O. Box 149
Newton, MA 02161

Dear Ms. Altschuler: 

The AFPMB has completed its review of the volume of reprints you provided for us on lice and disease. Thank you for putting the package together for us.

Three reviewers from our Medical Entomology Committee reviewed and independently submitted their analyses of the reprints. The results of review were presented to the Medical Entomology Committee, and subsequently submitted to the AFPMB Council at our July meeting. The Medical Entomology Committee concluded that, based on the literature reviewed, the head louse potentially can serve as a secondary vector of normal louse-borne diseases, particularly epidemic typhus and louse-borne fever. However, the primary vector of both these diseases, based on epidemiological evidence, is the body louse.

Please note that neither of these diseases are considered to be of military operational importance. However, they are of interest in selected situations -- refugee situations, prisoner of war camps, and in developing countries. These conclusions only address vector-borne disease status, not pediculosis in its own right. Pediculosis per se is not considered military significant because it does not have the potential to be a war-stopper.

The AFPMB made two recommendations. One was to send a summary of the reviews to our pest management professionals. A brief article also written for out Technical Information Bulletin. I have attached a copy of that article. We also expect to send a summary to military training centers for possible use in classroom instruction for the medical specialties, The second major recommendation was to submit a copy of the volume of reprints you provided a1ong with our review to the Armed Forces Pest Epidemio1ogy Board (AFEB). We will ask that they do a similar review. I assume that you support this recommendation and do not mind sharing another copy of your literature volume with the AFEB.

We greatly appreciate you bringing this subject to our attention. Thank you again for the service you have provided to the medical entomology community.

HERBERT T. BOLTON
CAPT, MSC, USN
Executive Director

Herbert T. Bolton
Capt, MSC, USN
Executive Director
Armed Forces Pest Management Board
Forest Glen Section, WRAMC
Washington, D.C. 20307-5001

Dear Captain Bolton:

I have received your letter regarding the review of reprints on lice and disease. I am gratified by the responsible way in which your Board reviewed the information submitted. I believe that your report is balanced and fair to that which is available in the literature on typhus and head lice. This is especially meaningful considering that there remains yet another body of similarly related literature on head lice and relapsing fever.

The AFPMB recommendations as you mentioned in your letter demonstrate enormous progress as well as commitment to providing accurate and consistent messages on this subject. I support and welcome your recommendations to submit a copy of the volume of reprints to the AFEB and to share your summary with the military training centers for possible use in classroom instruction.

On behalf of myself and the NPA, I would like to again express our gratitude for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely yours,

Deborah Z. Altschuler
President