Safely screen, detect, and remove head lice and nits.

You are here: Home / Archives for NPA

Nits on ancient mummies shed light on South American ancestry

Human DNA can be extracted from the ‘cement’ head lice used to glue their eggs to hairs thousands of years ago, scientists have found, which could provide an important new window into the past. In a new study, scientists for the first time recovered DNA from cement on hairs taken from mummified remains that date back 1,500-2,000 years. This is possible because skin cells from the scalp become encased in the cement produced by female lice as they attach eggs, known as nits, to the hair.EurekAlert: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/938695 …

Nits on ancient mummies shed light on South American ancestryRead More

Women in Agricultural Work at Increased Risk for Skin and Blood Cancers from Pesticide Exposure

A past report demonstrates an association between cancer and pesticides such as 2,4-D, glyphosate, lindane, and DDT.A study published in Environment International finds higher rates of various cancers among agricultural workers, with multiple myeloma (blood cancer) and melanoma (skin cancer) disproportionately impacting female farmers. Although research studies link cancer risk to genetic and external factors (e.g., cigarette smoke), there is increasing evidence that pesticide exposure augments the risk of developing common cancers like melanoma and less common cancers like multiple myeloma. This study highlights the importance of understanding how pesticide use can increase the risk of latent diseases, which do not immediately develop upon initial exposure. From: Beyond Pesticides, …

Women in Agricultural Work at Increased Risk for Skin and Blood Cancers from Pesticide ExposureRead More

September is National Head Lice Prevention Month

"Even with the ongoing challenges of COVID-19, parents, schools and child care administrators need to be prepared to control head lice." NEWTON, Mass. (PRWEB) August 27, 2021. National Pediculosis Prevention Month was first designated in 1985 via H.J. Res. 223. This will be the 36th consecutive year that the nonprofit National Pediculosis Association (NPA), has sponsored its campaign to inform communities about the importance of routine screening, early detection and the safest possible approach to managing pediculosis, known medically as head lice. https://www.headlice.org/comb/pediculosis-prevention-resolution-submitted-to-congress/ NPA's president Deborah Altschuler says that head lice prevention remains important during the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents, …

September is National Head Lice Prevention MonthRead More

Here’s What Lice Infesting Your Eyelashes Looks Like

Here’s an eyebrow-raising sight. This month, doctors in China reported on a rare case of phthiriasis palpebrarum, or an infestation of pubic lice on the eyelashes, complete with clear images of the itchy offenders. Though it’s not clear how the lice ended up on the young patient, doctors were able to treat her infestation with no issues.The case report was published July 3 in the New England Journal of Medicine by doctors Xue Feng and Hong Qi from the Peking University Third Hospital in Beijing, China. According to the report, a 8-year-old girl visited the hospital after experiencing three weeks of itchy eyelids. Upon examination, the eyelids were reddened. And when the doctors looked closer, they spotted the clear presence of adult lice and nits on the girl’s eyelashes. The lice were then …

Here’s What Lice Infesting Your Eyelashes Looks LikeRead More

Assessment of the prevalence of pediculosis capitis and related effective features among primary schoolchildren in Ahvaz County, Southwest of Iran

The present research was carried out to investigate the prevalence of head lice and related effective features among students in primary schools of Ahvaz County; Iran; to suitable training programs via improve the health promotion of the students in this county during winter 2016 and spring 2017. The sample size was 5930 students that was determined by using a single population proportion formula. In this analytical-descriptive study, samples were selected by a multistep, classification random sampling strategy. The data was collected in two parts, a carefully visual examination of the hair and scalp with head lice comb, and an interview to complete a questionnaire about epidemiologic factors. The collected data was evaluated using SPSS software, version 22. These data were compared using …

Assessment of the prevalence of pediculosis capitis and related effective features among primary schoolchildren in Ahvaz County, Southwest of IranRead More

Pesticide Exposure Linked to Increased Risk for Thyroid Cancer

"According to an investigation done on male pesticide applicators, exposure to pesticides such as metalaxyl and lindane was associated with an increased risk for thyroid cancer... 'Many pesticides are known to have thyroid-disrupting properties. However, few studies have evaluated the association between specific pesticide ingredients and risk of thyroid cancer. We investigated self-reported pesticide use and incident thyroid cancer in the Agricultural Health Study (AHS), a large cohort of occupationally-exposed male pesticide applicators,' explained Catherine C. Lerro, PhD, MPH, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, Maryland, and colleagues. The AHS prospective cohort consists of licensed pesticide applicators from Iowa and North …

Pesticide Exposure Linked to Increased Risk for Thyroid CancerRead More

This Widely Used Pesticide May Increase Your Risk of COVID

Malathion is recommended by CDC for people with head lice.  It is an organophosphate insecticide.  A review in Food and Chemical Toxicology suggests organophosphorus pesticides may increase the ability of SARS-CoV-2 to cause COVID, especially among vulnerable people with underlying medical conditions.A review published in Food and Chemical Toxicology suggests organophosphorus pesticides (OPs) may increase the ability of SARS-CoV-2 to cause COVID-19, especially among vulnerable individuals with underlying medical conditions. Organophosphorus pesticides (OP) have a wide range of biological uses that makes these chemicals ubiquitous, significantly contaminating both terrestrial (land) and aquatic (water) environments.However, OPs are highly toxic, originating from the same compounds as …

This Widely Used Pesticide May Increase Your Risk of COVIDRead More

Phthiriasis capitis ab initio. Use of entodermoscopy for quick differentiation between Phthirus pubis and Pediculus capitis nits

Phthiriasis pubis (crab louse infestation) is an ectoparasitosis transmitted mostly by skin to skin contact, primarily located in the genital areas and secondly, if treated late, expanding towards the armpits or other parts of the adult body with thick hair. In children before sexual maturation, the affected sites can include the eyelashes or head hair, usually after contact with an adult who has been sexually infected. Commonly, diagnosis is easy and requires finding eggs (nits) and/or insects, generally firmly hooked to hair shaft base. Because phthiriasis is included in sexually transmitted diseases, it is recommended to expand investigation to other venereal diseases.Recent reports about Phthirus pubis seem to suggest a change of its usual behavior, favoring a primary scalp location …

Phthiriasis capitis ab initio. Use of entodermoscopy for quick differentiation between Phthirus pubis and Pediculus capitis nitsRead More

Pesticide mixtures harm health even when each pesticide is present at “safe” levels

Mixtures of pesticide residues commonly found in foods in the EU can have adverse effects on health even when each individual pesticide is present at a level considered safe by regulators, a new study shows.The study also found that the use of molecular analytical techniques known as "omics" can reveal adverse effects on health that are missed by the standard toxicological measures used to support regulatory authorisations of pesticides.The study found that the standard toxicological measures – analysis of water and feed consumption, body weight, histology (microscopic examination of tissues), and blood biochemistry – showed little or no evidence of harm. But in contrast, the omics analyses showed biochemical changes in the gut and blood and gene function changes in the liver that …

Pesticide mixtures harm health even when each pesticide is present at “safe” levelsRead More