Schools no longer nitpicky about head lice

STAFF REPORT

With the backing of some major health organizations, a majority of schools across the country are allowing youngsters to stay in class if they have nits - that is, lice eggs - but no crawling lice in their hair.

It's a change recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Association of School Nurses, and it has been welcomed by many educators and parents, who worried that students were missing too much school, moms and dads were missing work, and children were being made to feel ashamed.

A widely cited figure of the U.S. having 6 million to 12 million cases of head lice each year is only a guess and no one knows for sure, said Dr. Barbara Frankowski, a Vermont pediatrician who has studied the subject. It is not clear whether there have been more infestations in recent years as a result of the new, more relaxed policies.

The switch came after a 2002 pediatrics academy study said students with nits shouldn't be kept out of class. The real problem, according to the medical experts, is the lice, not their eggs.

Once nits hatch, they generally take 7 to 10 days to become full-grown adults that can lay eggs and begin the cycle all over again.

An estimated 60 percent of schools now allow children with nits to stay in class.

The pediatrics academy also says that kids who are found to have crawling head lice should be allowed to stay in school for the rest of the day but discouraged from close head contact with others. But not many school districts have gone that far.

For school officials, it's an issue they can't win. Sherry Marbury, the state nurse supervisor for the Alabama Department of Education, says she gets calls about lice throughout the school year and doesn't expect the debate to end anytime soon.

"Lice has been an issue since the beginning of time," she said. "It's an ongoing problem and the bug won. A lot of people haven't figured it out yet, but in this game, he won."

Getting rid of head lice often requires a strong anti-lice shampoo to kill the crawling bugs, and a fine-tooth comb to pick the nits out of the hair. But the safety and effectiveness of some shampoos are questionable, and removing all the nits can take days.

Joan Sawyer, of Cambridge, Mass., set out to help frustrated parents after her daughters got lice following a stay at summer camp and co-created a company called HeadLicetoDeadLice.com.

They came up with a "5-Step Battle Plan" that includes the optional use of a pediculicide shampoo but mostly supports manual nitpicking and using olive oil to suffocate lice before washing them out.

Their humorous 'Head Lice to Dead Lice' DVD has been bought and used by thousands of schools and can be viewed for free at http://www.headliceinfo.com/freemovies/ along with a demonstration of the proper way to nitpick.

"The no-nit policy is useful when it's not used in a tyrannical way to keep kids out of school forever," Sawyer said. "But when you have a family that doesn't care and isn't trying to get rid of the lice, it does give the nurse some leverage."

The dangers of lice are small, Frankowski said. Lice have not been found to carry disease, though excessive scratching can lead to infections.

"It's a frustrating thing, but if you kind of put it in perspective with all the things that can happen sending your child off to school every day - heck, the school bus can go off the road," Frankowski said.