Cootie. Body lice: features of their appearance and lifestyle

The optimal place for the transformation of eggs into an adult is the human body. The female louse, using a special selection, sticks her eggs to the human body, and a constant temperature regime accelerates the process of transformation and development of eggs into larvae.
The body louse, after drinking blood, is very similar to a flea, as its transparent belly becomes dark and swollen. If the latter, at the time of their discovery, can quickly rebound, then the lice will hide very slowly.
The transformation of an egg into a larva is very fast. The second stage of transformation is the transition to the larva. In science, the larvae after the first molt are called nymphs.
The only difference between larva and adult lice is the size, they can be up to 2 mm. During their development, the larvae undergo three molts, after which they become full-fledged lice.

Body lice eggs are called nits. With the help of a special selection, they are attached to clothing and have a length of 0.5 mm. As a result of their small size, they are almost impossible to notice on clothing. The transformation process takes place in the folds of clothing and its pile. Usually, mature individuals stay near their offspring and leave them only for food, making their way to human skin. The mouth of the louse is filled with peculiar needles, with which they bite through the skin. A person does not feel the bites of body lice, because during it, a special enzyme is released from the lice's mouth, which prevents blood clotting and ensures that human receptors are insensitive to the bite.

Important! The most favorite places for the development and transformation of lice are the places of greatest contact with the body, namely the neck, groin, abdomen, armpits and inner thighs.

The most susceptible to infestation with lice are adults who, for one reason or another, do not monitor their hygiene. During the change of clothes, some lice fall on the head of a person, other parts of it and, feeling the hairline, try to get back on the clothes as quickly as possible. In such cases, the neck becomes the most unprotected place on the body. These insects avoid synthetic clothing as it is difficult for them to hold on and live on.

After the bite of this insect, redness occurs on the body and a rash appears, which itches very much. If there were many such bites, then the person combs the affected area, which provokes other infections. In the case of prolonged infestation by such insects, changes occur in the skin covering, as a result of which the skin becomes rougher and thicker, its color changes, and small scars appear.

The process of treating pediculosis is carried out by changing clothes and maintaining hygiene.

Nutritional features of lice

If bed linen is infected and lice live there, then they, taking advantage of their position, tend to feast on the most tender and bloody areas of the human body, which are the neck and head.

For the proper development of an adult, it is necessary to eat 3-4 times a day, and therefore they select their breadwinners from such categories as homeless people, refugees and those who violate sanitary standards. In people who follow the rules of personal hygiene, lice cannot live.
The ideal temperature for lice to live is 30 degrees. With a decrease in this temperature, their further development, transformation and living becomes impossible, and from exposure to very high or low temperatures, they die. This feature of their life activity makes it possible to carry out the complete destruction of offspring and to bring out adults for a long time, without the use of chemicals, but only with the help of ordinary washing or exposure to low temperature.

Sites of infection

In most cases, body lice can be infected in crowded places. They are transmitted through close contact or during the use of clothing by an infected person. Some of the most common sites of infection are:

Kindergartens and schools.
Public transport.
Hotels and inns.
Public baths and saunas, namely their changing rooms.
Reservoirs with stagnant water.

Lice have the ability to stay in water for up to two days and therefore can be infected in public bathing areas.

Symptoms of body lice infestation

Lice mainly feed on non-hairy parts of the body: on the neck, armpits, thighs and abdomen. Lice bites provoke the appearance of certain symptoms, which in medicine are called body lice.

The characteristic symptoms are:

Bite marks that disappear after 3-4 days.
The occurrence of itching in the affected part of the body.
The appearance of a rash.
Generalized symptoms, which are accompanied by fever, indigestion.
Change in skin color.
The appearance of small ulcers.

With the right and comprehensive approach to solving the problem, removing lice is not difficult.

The most effective remedy for the destruction of lice on the body and apartment is the treatment of the hospital. As a result of using the most effective means and methods, this will allow you to withdraw them in a matter of minutes.

Advice! If you are not confident in your abilities and cannot independently destroy lice and treat your body from their effects, it is better to contact specialists.

First steps for destruction and treatment:

Wash all clothes that may have lice on them. To do this, you need to put things in the washing machine, while adding a special agent to combat them or pour ordinary vinegar. The washing temperature must be at least 60 degrees.
Wash thoroughly and treat the entire surface of the skin with a pediculicide cream.

Treatment for bites should be carried out with alcohol solutions throughout the body.
Treat all upholstered furniture with anti-lice products.

To date, there are a huge number of chemicals that will help destroy lice with their own hands.

Body lice are very similar to head lice. They have the same small body, the length of which reaches about 3 mm, and a slightly elongated abdomen, painted in light gray or light yellow.

Body lice larvae look very similar to adults and differ only in size - 1.5-2 mm. During their development, they experience three molts and only after that they reach full maturity.

The eggs of these insects, like other lice, are called nits. Their shell is covered with an adhesive substance, with the help of which they stick quite firmly on clothes and it is very problematic to remove them mechanically. The shape of the eggs is elongated, the size is about 0.5 mm. Due to their small size, nits are very securely hidden from the human eye, and it is impossible to accidentally detect them.

The process of reproduction, as well as normal life, in body lice can occur under certain conditions - a temperature of + 30 ° C is considered optimal, and when the thermometer drops to + 15 ° C and below, the development of nits stops. If the air temperature drops below -13 ° C or exceeds + 60 ° C, then body lice are guaranteed to die.
Female individuals are able to exist for no more than 45 days, while males live even less, often less than a month. But for female body lice, this period is enough to lay 100-140 eggs (about 4 nits per day). When the nit comes out of the egg, she drinks blood once, after which she molts and immediately becomes a nymph of the first age. After 5 days, she experiences a second molt and turns into a nymph of the second age. The third time it changes its chitinous cover after another 8 days and after that it becomes an adult insect. At the optimum air temperature, in just 16 days, the former egg will give new offspring, that is, the hatched nymph will have time to mature and bring new nits. And if no action is taken, then in two months the colony of body lice will increase its numbers by several hundred times.

What is body pediculosis?

In fact, it is quite simple to prevent the development of body lice, the main thing in this matter is to know the ways of its spread, which include:

bodily contact with the carrier, in which lice can move onto the clothes of a healthy person, and since these small insects are able to move at a speed of about 20 cm per minute, the contact should be quite long;
you can get infected in crowded places, which include public transport, especially during rush hour, when contact occurs most closely;
kindergartens and schools are also no exception, as children are in contact with each other quite actively and do not particularly pay attention to the appearance of their interlocutor;
Spontaneous markets for the sale of used clothes, or simply second-hand ones, can become a real breeding ground for linen lice, since such things do not always undergo the necessary sanitization.

And in order not to get infected with head lice, you should take into account all the above methods of its distribution, be extremely careful in crowded places and try not to buy clothes, especially underwear, in potentially dangerous places.

The appearance of body lice will be "marked" by the following symptoms:

bite marks, which, with a small amount, heal themselves after 4 days;
itching appears at the sites of the lesion, both at the site of the bite itself and in the area surrounding it;
an allergic reaction may occur, which will be accompanied by a rash on the body or more serious manifestations - fever, digestive upset, headaches, nausea;
with a large number of bites, bluish spots may appear on the skin;
constant itching can lead to nervous disorders and insomnia.

On a note! Children can react especially painfully to body lice bites. They will often cry for no particular reason, sleep poorly and be nervous for minor reasons.

As practice shows, most often it is the symptoms that indicate the occurrence of body lice, rather than the found insects. They hide so well in the folds of clothing that if you do not set a goal, then it is almost impossible to see them on any thing.

It becomes clear that it is the itching that appears at the bite sites that is the main symptom of head lice. The insect bites through the skin, saturates with blood and injects an anesthetic secretion that prevents blood from clotting.

Most often, body lice bites will be localized in places where clothes fit to the body:

waist;
shoulders;
upper back;
small of the back;
armpits.

But bites can also occur on other parts of the body that are not covered with hair.

Important! Clothes pediculosis became the main source of development of relapsing and typhus, which claimed thousands of lives during the war. Today, such diseases affect mainly residents of African and Asian countries, where sanitary conditions leave much to be desired.

How to deal with these insects?

To get rid of body lice, serious measures should be taken, which include both the processing of things and the use of body products. The whole set of events will look like this:

collect all infected items and wash them in automatic mode at the maximum allowable temperature. In this case, it is necessary to add one of the modern insecticidal agents;

Advice! If you do not have the opportunity to do this, then it is recommended to take the clothes to the dry cleaners.
treat the body with a pediculicide and wash it off after the time specified in the instructions;
after carrying out these procedures, it is necessary to put on clean clothes, and hang the previously infected and washed things on the balcony and leave them in direct sunlight for two weeks.

Body Treatments

To combat body lice on the body, you need to choose a reliable remedy. These include shampoos, lotions and sprays:

Pair Plus;
Nittifor;
Nit free.

They must be applied to the body, paying special attention to the affected areas, it is advisable to wrap yourself in polyethylene (you can use cling film) and wash off after a certain time. In various preparations, a time interval of 10 to 45 minutes may be indicated.

On a note! Kerosene also belongs to, but they can cause burns on the skin, and the effectiveness of such drugs is much lower than special ones.

How to process clothes?

Previously, the same was used to treat clothes from lice. It was added to the water in which the laundry was soaked, then it was all boiled, after which the lice were guaranteed to die. However, this method has a number of negative features:

it is undesirable to add kerosene to the washing machine;
when washing by hand, wear rubber gloves, as the solution can cause a negative skin reaction;
during boiling, kerosene vapor evaporates, which can lead to poisoning;
it is quite problematic to remove the smell of this substance in clothes.

Therefore, today, in order for body lice to die, they choose easier-to-use and highly effective anti-pediculicidal drugs:

Important! Remember that the processing of the body must be carried out simultaneously with the processing of things. This will reduce the risk of re-infection.

natural remedies

The following recipes may come in handy for head lice, which has not yet developed to a serious extent. These methods are simple and, as practice shows, give a positive result quite quickly.

Body lice are blood-sucking insects that can carry dangerous diseases. The question of what body lice are can be answered briefly - dangerous creatures that must be fought immediately after detection. They call it a lice infestation.

body length reaches 3 mm;
color light brown, gray, crimson, varies depending on the intake of food;
the insides are visible through the translucent chitinous cover.

The eggs, called nits, are oblong and white in color. The size does not exceed 0.5 mm. Considering a single egg is problematic. The accumulation of nits resembles accidentally spilled sand. After 14 days of development, nymphs of the first generation appear from the nits. They differ from adults in size, lighter body color.

On a note!
Body lice mature, like head lice, in about 20 days. During this time, several links pass, after each they increase in size. At the last stage, the genitals are formed, after which the individuals are ready for. An adult lives for about 45 days.

How body lice look at different stages of development can be seen in the photo below.

Manifestations of clothing, wearable pediculosis

Body lice symptoms are numerous bites on the body. The insect lives outside the human body, lays eggs in the seams, folds of bedding, clothing.

A photo of the allergic reaction is posted below.

How to detect body lice, you do not have to rack your brains for a long time. It is necessary to carefully examine the bedding, things that the patient wore for a month, underwear.
Clothes pediculosis develops outside the human body. Lice form nests in folds, seams, under the mattress, as well as in toys, interior items with a fleecy surface.
On a note!
Lice on clothes with a large number are clearly visible to the naked eye, but during search work it is better to use a magnifying glass, magnifying glass.

Fighting methods
The remedy for body lice is sold in a pharmacy, you can buy from SES representatives. for the body is produced in the form of an emulsion, lotion. It is necessary to take a shower, treat the body with the preparation, leave to act for 5 minutes, rinse.
Put on clean clothes, go to bed with washed, ironed accessories. If you follow all the recommendations, you can get rid of pediculosis in 1 day.
On a note!
Lice bites go away within 3 days without special treatment, but speed up the process. You can remove an unpleasant itch with the help of Asterisk balm, Fenistil Gel, calendula tincture.
If, against the background of numerous bites, an allergic reaction develops, symptomatic therapy is prescribed with the use of antihistamines, antiallergic ointments. Processing should be carried out after consultation with a specialist.
An insect can bite adults and children, but prefers the delicate epidermis of a child. The correct actions of adults can save the child from inconvenience, unpleasant symptoms.

Understanding what body lice look like is easy enough. Especially this process will not be difficult for people who have experienced head lice. The body of the insect can reach a length of 3 mm. Its abdomen is slightly elongated, and the color can be light yellow or gray.

The body louse lives for about a month. During this period, the female has time to lay about 100-130 eggs. But, having left the shell, the individual must transform several more times. Full puberty takes 16 days.

Clothes louse lives for about a month

When a louse needs food, it moves from clothes to the body of its owner, drinks blood, and then returns to its former habitat again. Most often, these are folds and seams on clothes. The place for feeding lice is located precisely in the area of \u200b\u200btheir localization. For example, if an insect has settled in the belt of trousers, then the place intended for “lunch” will be the lower back or lower abdomen.

Insect bites cause severe itching and scratching.

Let us consider in more detail the features of clothes pediculosis, and how to get rid of it.

The body louse is white-gray, rather large: male - 2-3.5 mm, female - 2.2-5 mm. Life expectancy - 33-45 days. It is believed that it appeared during the evolution of the head louse due to the fact that people began to use clothes more often.

For nutrition, the louse temporarily passes to the skin of the host (6-8 times per day).

Prolonged high temperature has a detrimental effect on insects - more than 50 ° C for 10-15 minutes.

Body lice can carry dangerous bacteria that cause:

typhus;
relapsing fever;
Volyn fever.

Ways of infection

Clothes pediculosis is a disease of the poor and homeless people, it also occurs in elderly bedridden old people who are not properly cared for.

The disease is transmitted through contaminated clothing and underwear, on which there are viable individuals.

Public areas are ideal for this, where there is a constant plentiful flow of settlers:

hotels, hostels;
long distance trains;
sanatoriums;
kindergartens, camps.

Therefore, before choosing a place of rest or lodging for the night, pay attention to the cleanliness of bed linen and towels.

Cases of infection with clothes pediculosis through things and clothes that were in use (second-hand) are not uncommon.

Symptoms of the disease

Because the body louse feeds on human blood, then it is the bites that betray its existence (heal in 3-4 days).

Especially often they appear in places of close contact between the body and clothing (or bed linen):

small of the back;
shoulder blades and interscapular space;
buttocks.

Each bite is accompanied by unbearable itching, then the person combs the skin. In places, an erythematous-papular rash appears on the skin. With prolonged existence of lice, the skin in these areas becomes highly pigmented, compacted, and flaky. Yellow-brown crusts appear.

A photo

It looks like a body lice traces of body lice
on clothes

It is not excluded the layering of additional skin infections: pyoderma, boils, eczema. With suppuration of several areas of the skin, fever and other symptoms of intoxication (headache, weakness, irritability) may join.

The correct diagnosis can be established after the detection of lice or nits.

Treatment of clothes pediculosis

To get rid of the manifestations of the disease, you need to completely eliminate its pathogen. To do this, it is enough to carry out the correct sanitization of all clothes and bed linen.

It is also good to carry out a wet cleaning of the house using a 5% vinegar solution.

If the skin itches after being bitten, treat the affected areas with 5% boric or 4% carbolic alcohol several times a day. You can also drink antipruritic drugs (fencarol, suprastin, tavegil) or apply a hormonal ointment with prednisolone or hydrocortisone.