Entries Tagged 'scabies' ↓

The Erie Times-News reports on another scabies outbreak in a nursing home.

Tiny parasites forced one of Erie County’s largest nursing homes to repeatedly disinfect its Alzheimer’s unit and treat many of its residents.

Fifteen residents of the Gallagher Center of Saint Mary’s Home East, 607 E. 26th St., developed what physicians believe was scabies, a contagious skin infection caused by skin mites. An unknown number of staff and patients’ family members also developed the condition.

“We never found the organism on any patient, but based on their symptoms, we believe it was scabies,” said Dorothy Candib, M.D., Saint Mary’s Home medical director.

The first case was reported in the spring, though most cases were reported in June and July, Candib said. The original patient was treated by a dermatologist, but other cases followed.

The first case was identified after family members came down with scabies following a visit to their relative in the hospital:

Carla Slomski and several members of her family developed scabies after visiting their father, Thomas Piotrowicz, who was a resident in the Gallagher unit until his death April 30.

Apparently the problem is cleared up now. According to the article, no one currently has scabies in this unit.

You can read the article here.

This article by Sandra G. Boodman (accessible from SouthCostToday.com) describes the unusual case of a doctor (an infectious disease specialist, no less) who had trouble getting his scabies diagnosed by doctors.  And yet the fourth dermatologist, Howard Luber, had no trouble identifying the problem. Norwegian scabies, or crusted scabies:

The diagnosis was so obvious, Luber recalled, that his nurse suggested it after taking Robert Clark’s history and looking at the angry, encrusted rash that blanketed nearly every inch of the 64 year old’s body except his face.

Luber’s certainty was all the more surprising because of who the patient was and what he’d endured: A physician who specialized in infectious diseases, Clark had seen numerous doctors, including three dermatologists, immunologists, internists and infectious disease experts, all of whom had been stumped by the cause of his ferocious, uncontrollable itching. He had undergone two skin biopsies and taken countless drugs, but he would still awaken with fingernails bloody from scratching his skin raw. Doctors who had treated him for more than a year couldn’t decide whether his problem was severe eczema, a rare cancer, an unusual fungal infection, an autoimmune disorder or an unspecified allergy.

Scabies can look like other conditions, but it can also be tested with a skin scraping.  It is not usually so difficult to detect.  If you suspect scabies, see your doctor for a skin test and treatment.

The Ottawa SUN reports that five confirmed and two suspected cases of scabies meant 137 employees and 55 residents required preventive medical treatment:

Five confirmed and two probable cases have been diagnosed in the Foyer du Bonheur at 125 Lionel-Emond Blvd. in the Hull sector. All of the cases are on the same floor.

The facility had a scabies outbreak a year ago.

You can read more about scabies mites here.
Or read the Ottawa SUN article here.

This Body Odd article begins with Nina Bradica’s bird mites story, and reminds us that bird mites are a rare occurrence.

While bird mite infestations in humans are rare, they do happen, says Dr. Richard Zack, associate professor and chair of the department of entomology at Washington State University. The most common infestations occur in people who work in the bird and poultry industry, but the creatures will flock to anybody if the circumstances are right.

“Nesting birds or small mammals carry their own set of parasites and although those parasites don’t normally feed or interfere with humans, if something happens to the mice or the birds that are nesting in your house, the parasites will look for an alternative food source,” he says. Unfortunately, that alternative food source can be you.”

The article also mentions head lice, body lice, follicular mites, bed bugs, scabies, and more.

Scabies occurs when the Sarcoptes scabiei mite burrows under your skin.

This photo shows someone with scabies on her hand, after six days’ development:

According to the CDC’s page on scabies, the symptoms are:

• Pimple-like irritations, burrows or rash of the skin, especially the webbing between the fingers; the skin folds on the wrist, elbow, or knee; the penis, the breast, or shoulder blades.
• Intense itching, especially at night and over most of the body.
• Sores on the body caused by scratching. These sores can sometimes become infected with bacteria.

Scabies can take 4-6 weeks to appear after exposure. You can catch scabies by prolonged skin-to-skin contact with others, or by sharing items that touch the skin, like towels, unwashed clothing, and sheets. (The CDC website says it is not commonly caught via a handshake or a hug.)

If you think you have scabies, do not try to treat it on your own. See a doctor.

Sometimes other conditions (like bed bug bites) can be mistaken for scabies, even by a doctor.

It’s a good idea to ask your doctor to confirm the presence of scabies, by doing a skin scraping. But remember, even a negative result from the scraping does not mean you do not have scabies.

If you do have scabies, you need to be treated with a prescription medication. One treatment usually works, but if not, the doctor will want you to repeat it or try another lotion. In order to make sure you don’t get it again from your clothing and sheets, you will also need to wash and dry all worn clothing and bedding on hot.

Photos of scabies on skin from the University of Iowa Hardin MD site.

Here’s a page on scabies (La sarna) in Spanish.

Scabies mites look like the following picture, but of course, you won’t be able to see them.

Scabies, by MacAllen Brothers (Micah MacAllen). Used under a Creative Commons Attibution/Share-Alike license.