Mid-Missouri medical professionals weigh in on super lice after outbreak hits Missouri
Just the thought of having lice is enough to make anyone squirm, and the thought of “super lice” making its way to Missouri isn’t very comforting.
Lice in more than 30 states, including Missouri, have tested positive for the mutated strain of head lice.
Pediatricians in mid-Missouri have seen a few cases already.
“We’ve had a few that haven’t been responding to over the counter medicines,” said John Wilson, a pediatrician at CoMO Cubs Pediatrics in Columbia.
According to Wilson, the term “super lice” means it’s mutated lice that has become resistant to standard medical treatments that get rid of it.
But Wilson says this super strain of lice isn’t anything new and it’s not even harmful. He says medical professionals have known about the resistant strains for quite some time now.
He says if the over the counter medications aren’t working after one or two treatments, you should visit your doctor to get a prescription for a stronger medication.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates about 6 to 12 million outbreaks happen each year among children 3 to 11-years-old.
ABC17 News reached out to Columbia Public Schools to find out if there have been any cases and how it typically keeps the schools lice-free, especially since they are a prime place for an outbreak.
CPS spokesperson Michelle Baumstark says schools have not had any prominent cases of super lice in the district, and they usually have pretty isolated cases of lice if they get them.
Lice prevention is pretty simple, even when dealing with super lice.
She says since lice is transported from person-to-person contact, school officials urge the students not to share hats or brushes.
CPS doesn’t typically screen for lice, but Baumstark says if school officials discover it they’ll send the child home and make sure to check to see if anyone else may have come in contact and gotten the little bugs.
The district also sends information home to parents on the best way to treat lice, and now it’s also recommending if the lice doesn’t go away and it might be super lice to contact their pediatrician or doctor for stronger treatment options.
But Baumstark says the lice won’t get into carpets or anything like that since they survive on living things, so the district won’t shut down the school if someone is found with lice.
But medical professionals make clear that it’s not going to harm your kids, it’s just an annoyance. It’s also easily preventable, even when it’s super lice.
