Head Lice News and Research

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Head lice infestation is also called “Pediculosis capitis”. “Pediculosis” refers to louse infestation and “capitis” means the head.

Key proteins enable louse-borne relapsing fever pathogen to evade immunity

Louse-borne relapsing fever is caused by the spirochete bacterium Borrelia recurrentis, which is transmitted by body lice (not head lice).

10 Jun 2026

Lice pose no health threat, yet some parents push back on rules to allow affected kids in class

Any evidence of lice was once a reason for immediate dismissal from school, not to return until the student's head was lice-free.

10 Sep 2025

Ivermectin mass treatment shows great promise in reducing malaria transmission

Ivermectin administered to the whole population significantly reduces malaria transmission, offering new hope in the fight against the disease.

24 Jul 2025

Effective ways to combat head lice in schoolchildren

Head lice affect millions of children every year. Schoolchildren are commonly affected by head lice, which attach to hair and feed on human blood.

21 Feb 2025

Hospitals refused to give patients ivermectin. Lockdowns and political pressure followed.

One Montana hospital went into lockdown and called police after a woman threatened violence because her relative was denied her request to be treated with ivermectin.

2 Dec 2021

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The big Biden budget bill passes the House

President Joe Biden's "Build Back Better" social spending bill passed the House last week, but the legislation faces a new and different set of hurdles in the Senate, where it will need the support of every single Democrat, plus approval by the Senate parliamentarian.

23 Nov 2021

A covid head-scratcher: Why lice lurk despite physical distancing

The Marker family opened their door on a recent evening to a woman dressed in purple, with a military attitude to cleanliness.

19 Nov 2021

As constituents clamor for ivermectin, Republican politicians embrace the cause

When state senators in South Carolina held two hearings in September about covid-19 treatments, they got an earful on the benefits of ivermectin — which many of the lawmakers echoed, sharing experiences of their own loved ones.

8 Nov 2021

Common pesticide exposure associated with increased risk of chronic kidney disease

A commonly available pesticide has been associated with an increased risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in a University of Queensland study.

13 Oct 2021

Dispensing of hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin in Australia jumped in first year of COVID

A new study describes the nature and extent of the shift in dispensing these medications, as well as its eventual outcome.

3 Oct 2021

Systematic review explores the effects of ivermectin in preventing and treating COVID-19

Ivermectin, a drug used to treat parasites such as scabies in humans and intestinal helminths in cattle, was screened in 2020 for activity against COVID-19. Laboratory tests suggested a weak effect on SARS-CoV-2 virus in a test tube but did not seem feasible in humans as the doses needed would be large.

28 Jul 2021

Researchers examine whether community administration of ivermectin influences malaria transmission

Researchers from the LSTM based Cochrane Infectious Disease Group explored whether community administration of ivermectin influences malaria transmission.

29 Jun 2021

Could Ivermectin be an effective antiviral against SARS-CoV-2?

A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial has recently demonstrated that Ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug, can reduce in-hospital mortality rate of COVID-19 patients.

11 Jan 2021

FDA grants approval of nonprescription Sklice lotion to treat head lice infestations

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a lotion to treat head lice for nonprescription, or over-the-counter (OTC), use through a process called a prescription (Rx)-to-OTC switch.

27 Oct 2020

New head lice treatment receives FDA approval

The treatment, Xeglyze, was developed by Hatchtech, an Australian pharmaceutical company and will be commercialized by Dr Reddy's Laboratories.

3 Aug 2020

An ickier outbreak: Trench fever spread by lice is found in Denver

Dr. Michelle Barron, medical director of infection prevention and control at UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital, received an unusual call last month from the microbiology lab: confirmation of the third case this year of trench fever, a rare condition transmitted by body lice that plagued soldiers during World War I.

20 Jul 2020

The approved dose of ivermectin alone not useful in treating COVID-19

A new paper published on the preprint server medRxiv in April 2020 shows that the use of the already approved drug ivermectin in clinical trials to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)s not feasible. This contradicts earlier reports of its ability to suppress the virus in vitro.

27 Apr 2020

Antiparasitic drug Ivermectin kills coronavirus in 48 hours

Around the world, scientists race to develop a vaccine or treatment against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Now, a team of researchers has found that a drug already available around the world can kill the coronavirus in a lab setting in just 48 hours.

6 Apr 2020

Australian scientists identify possible coronavirus drug

A collaborative study led by Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute in Melbourne, Australia, with the Peter Doherty Institute of Infection and Immunity, has shown that an anti-parasitic drug already available around the world kills the virus within 48 hours.

3 Apr 2020

Stubborn egg loosening lotion launched by Hedrin

The UK’s number one head lice brand, Hedrin, has launched a Stubborn Egg Loosening Lotion, to complement its existing innovative range of head lice products.

6 Jun 2016