Parasites are all around us, infecting types of living things and existing as both commensals pathogens.1–3 Many parasitic infections found in tropical subtropical settings disproportionately affect individuals without access to adequate sanitary facilities fresh water.3 Important examples these include malaria, schistosomiasis, leishmaniasis, soil-transmitted helminths, food-borne trematodiase...

OBJECTIVE To determine the diagnostic accuracy of visual inspection and wet combing in pediculosis capitis (head lice infestation). Visual inspection of 5 predilection sites (temples, behind the ears, and neck) was performed first, followed by wet combing of hair moistened with conditioner. Presence of mobile stages was defined as active infestation, presence of nits alone as historic infestati...

To compare sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of self-diagnosis for head lice infestation with visual inspection, we conducted a study in an urban slum in Brazil. Individuals were asked about active head lice infestation (self-diagnosis); we performed visual inspection and thereafter wet combing (gold standard). Of the 175 individuals i...

In 2015, we investigated Bartonella quintana and typhus group rickettsiae in body lice from homeless persons in Bogotá, Colombia. We found B. quintana-infected body lice and seroprevalence of this microorganism in 19% of homeless persons and typhus group rickettsiae in 56%. Public health professionals should start preemptive measures and active vector control.

The diagnosis of head lice infestation is made through visual inspection of the hair and the scalp or by dry/wet combing. The choice of the method essentially depends whether the examiner aims at the detection of active infestation – presence of trophic stages and/or viable eggs – or wants to identify a historical infestation (presence only of nits/dead eggs). For the latter purpose, visual ins...

References 1. Childs JE, Ksiazek TG, Spiropoulou CF, Krebs JW, Morzunov S, Maupin GO, et al. Serologic and genetic identification of Peromyscus maniculatus as the primary rodent reservoir for a new hantavirus in the southwestern United States. J Infect Dis 1994;169:1271-80. 2. Glass GE, Johnson JS, Hodenbach GA, DiSalvo LJ, Peters CJ, Childs JE, et al. Experimental evaluation of rodent exclusio...

Genomic and transcriptomics analyses have revealed human head and body lice to be almost genetically identical; although con-specific, they nevertheless occupy distinct ecological niches and have differing feeding patterns. Most importantly, while head lice are not known to be vector competent, body lice can transmit three serious bacterial diseases; epidemictyphus, trench fever, and relapsing ...

Background: Head lice infestation is a major global health challenge which greatly affects school-aged children. This infestation has different rate in different regions of Iran from 0.9% to 30%. In spite of the diversity of Pediculosis treatments, it still has a high prevalence in the country and it becomes regularly epidemic. In Iranian traditional medicine, "Squill vinegar" ...