Scabies

Definition

Scabies is a highly contagious disease caused by a mite know as Sarcoptes scabiei. Few diseases carry so much social stigma as scabies. Most people openly express resentment when they are told that the cause of their itching is scabies. Actually, anybody can get scabies - the disease is caused by a mite, which is no respecter of anyones social status.

Caused of Scabies

Scabies is passed on from one person to another through intimate contact between bed fellows, infected bedding and clothes, by sharing a bed or from children who hold hands while playing. The mite can live on the discarded clothes for a couple of days. After contact, it takes about 6 weeks for the itching to start. The itching is more severe at night. Soon a rash appears on the body - this rash is not seen on the face and is most prominent on the hands, the waist, the abdomen and on the genitalia. Scabies is also caused by using the infected bedclothes and undergarments, but usually people do not get infected though mode as it is a very uncommon mode.

Symptom of Scabies

• Very often external genitalia in males and breasts in females are also affected. The face, however, is always spared except in infants.
• The most common symptoms of scabies is itching, which is often most severe at night or after a hot bath.
• The lesions are most pronounced on webs between the fingers, wrists, elbows, around the armpits, abdomen, buttocks and the inner sides of the thighs.
• The most important lesion which is almost diagnostic is a burrow. It appears as a whitish or a black zig zag line of about 6-12 mm length, caused by the mite burrowing horizontally in the horny layer of the epidermis.
• Scratching might result in the lesions getting secondarily infected with bacteria-producing pus containing lesions of impetigo, boils, abscesses, etc.
• In addition, there are inflammatory papules and some vesicles.

Treatment of Scabies

Scabies is treated with the local application of 25 percent benzyl benzoate emulsion (Ascabiol) or 10 percent gamma benzene hexachloride - both are very effective. It is very important that when one person in a family is suffering from scabies infection then all the members of the family should be treated simultaneously as it is a highly contagious disease and any person in the family may be suffering from it. Before using the medicine, the patient must have a thorough scrubbing, and a bath with soap and water. The lotion is applied all over the body except on the face. The applications are repeated at every interval of twelve hours and a total of 3 to 4 applications are sufficient. After 48 hours of the first application, the patient should again have a bath.

It is important that either the hands are not washed at all during these 48 hours or if washed, a second coating of the application is done immediately afterwards. The clothes must be changed at the end of the treatment and laundered.

Note: Scabies should be only treated by taking comple advice from your doctor.

When you go to your doctor with complaints of itching, he generally examines your hands very carefully - this is because he is looking to see if you have scabies. If you follow the directions given by the doctor carefully, scabies is easily treatable.

It is to be remembered that scabies is no respecter of persons. And it is not that a person of high social standing i.e. with a good record of personal hygiene is not immune to this disease. In such instances, it is likely that the clinical picture of a rash may not be typical and there may be only a few lesions.