|
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
February 9, 2012 |
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Image:Pthius pubis - crab louse.jpg|thumb|right|200px|A magnified crab louse Crab lice (singular, louse), scientific name Phthirus pubis and commonly called "crabs" due to their resemblence to the crab, are one of three kinds of human lice in the large group of lice families, the others being head lice and body lice, which live in clothing. They are wingless, about 1 to 3 mm long. They attach themselves to hair strands, and hatch out of pods with lids, or "nits", that are too tightly attached to be brushed off but must be removed by pulling with the nails or a fine-toothed comb. The crab louse can live in almost any form of humanoid hair, but is found most commonly in pubic hair, leading to its other common name of pubic lice|pubic louse. Its legs are adapted to climbing along relatively widely spaced hairs, and so can be found in eyelashes, pubic hair, beards, moustaches, and even armpit hairs. The individual louse can survive up to a week apart from its necessary human host, so that crab lice can be passed on in sleeping bags and bedding. The female may lay up to 40 eggs a time, resulting in a fluctuating but growing population. The louse feeds on blood and can leave irritating spots on the skin, sometimes mistaken for pimples, a condition called Pediculosis|Pediculosis pubis. Pubic lice have legs that are spaced further apart than head lice, this is an adaptation (biology)|adaptation that enables them to move around more easily in their habitat. The female louse glues her eggs, called "nits", which look like tiny white beads, to hair shafts. The louse feeds on human blood, and the bite causes itching. Bites can become secondarily infected; scratching may break the skin and help cause secondary infection. The most common symptom is itching of genital area. Pubic lice are normally spread by sexual contact and are considered a sexually transmitted disease, but can also be spread by sharing clothes or bed (furniture)|bedding. A common misbelief is that infestation can be spread by sitting on a toilet chair|seat. This isn't likely, since lice cannot live long away from a warm human body. Also, lice do not have feet designed to walk or hold onto smooth surfaces such as toilet seats. There are three stages in the life of a pubic louse: the nit, the nymph, and the adult.
Pubic lice are easily killed by a 1% permethrin or pyrethrin lice shampoo, but the pubic hair must be combed with a fine-toothed comb after treatment to remove the nits. Lice can survive in bedding and clothing, so these items must be treated, sterilized, or contact with them must be avoided for two weeks, after which time any lice will have died. Lindane (1%), another pediculocide, is not recommended for pregnant or nursing women or for children less than 2 years old.
de:Filzlaus ja:毛じらみ症 nl:schaamluis sv:Flatlus es:Ladilla Category:Parasites Category:Sexually-transmitted diseases This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Crab louse".
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
![[F]](/images/site.gif){kind=small}
|
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
All informatin on the site is © www.woman-health.org 2002-2011. Last revised: January 2, 2011 Are you interested in our site or/and want to use our information? please read how to contact us and our copyrights. To let us provide you with high quality information, you can help us by making a more or less donation: |